Yellow daisy, daisy red
by monroesque
Summary: Lorelai actually got pregnant with twins, two girls, at the age of sixteen. However, she kept it a secret, fearing the reaction of her parents and Christopher. Also some LL later on.
1. Yellow daisy, daisy red

Disclaimer:** Everything belongs to Amy Sherman Palladino**

Lorelai actually got pregnant with twins, two girls, at the age of sixteen. However, she kept it a secret, fearing the reaction of her parents and Christopher. So she decided that she would wait until the birth, when she would finally spill the beans. Francine and Strobe, Christopher's parents, however, couldn't live with the thought that their precious son would be a father of an illegitimate child, at the age of sixteen, and that all their plans, hopes and dreams for Christopher would be destroyed just because of an irresponsible girl. But worst of all, they feared what a child, born out of wedlock, could do to their status in society. So, Francine and Strobe, made an unbelievable decision. With their enormous wealth and financial power they bribed one of the doctors of Hartford Memorial, who should make it look like as if the baby died due to complications. When Lorelai finally got into labour and gave birth to her babies, the bribed doctor did what he was told to do, and diagnosed the death of one baby. Francine and Strobe were of course not happy with the newest development, but were unable to change the situation. They took the dead-believed baby and gave it up for adoption.

_The story takes place somewhere around the middle of season two. _

* * *

"Do you ask yourself sometimes how our lives would have turned out, if she hadn't died?" sixteen-year-old Rory Gilmore asked her mother, while she was looking at the small, elegantly carved, gravestone in front of her. 

"Every single minute, every single second, every single moment, honey…" Lorelai Gilmore answered truthfully, not taking her gaze from the flower covered grave. "Every single moment…" she repeated her last words and kneeled in front of the tomb so she could lay down the yellow daisy she brought.

Rory nodded in response and kneeled besides Lorelai. She took the red daisy she had clung to, while she watched her mom intensely and dug it in beside the yellow one. It had become a routine in their lives. Every Sunday afternoon, they would buy two daisies, a red one and a yellow one, and drive to Hartford's cemetery, to visit the grave of Avery Elizabeth Gilmore. Hand in hand and in complete silence, they would stroll along the little path to the old oak in the heart of the graveyard, where they would eventually reach their destination. Lorelai Gilmore has always been good with words. She was witty, funny, quick-witted and knew the perfect answer for every situation. Once a week however, Lorelai Gilmore was at loss of words. At first it scared Rory that her mother was simply standing there, staring intensely on the engraved words in front of her, and saying absolutely nothing. Yes, at first she was confused, how small and fragile her mother seemed every time they would visit Avery. Normally, her mother and best friend was strong and self-conscious and was nothing alike the woman she turned into every Sunday afternoon. Rory was simply too small to understand what was going on when they started to come here every week, but now she understood perfectly well what was going on inside her mom. So she would simply stand beside her mom, hold her hand and read the engraving over and over again.

"_Avery Elizabeth Gilmore ┼ 08. October 1984. Beloved daughter, sister and granddaughter. _

_Your are the thousand winds that blow. You are the diamond glints on snow. You are the sunlight on ripened grain. You are the gentle autumn rain. You are the swift uplifting rush of gentle birds in circling flight. You are the soft star that shines at night. Your parting has left a void, but will be filled with remembered joy._ _Avery your time seemed all too brief._

Rory's eyes slowly scanned over the marble stone, over the words, which have been burnt into her brain, since she read them the very first time when she was about 3 years old and Lorelai and Rory came here for the first time. Sure she couldn't read at this time, and maybe she didn't understand them fully, but Lorelai read them out loud over and over again until she could say them by heart. Now she knew of course what these words meant, and it may sound stupid, but they gave her hope. If anything didn't go as smooth in her life as she whished for or anything bothered her, she would stand still for a moment and take in her surroundings. She would let the wind tousle her hair, she would watch the glinting of the snow in winter, smell the gentle rain in autumn, watch the stars in the night or the flight of the birds. And during these moments of peace and calmness, she could feel a strange connection, a warm feeling deep inside her stomach, and in this moment she knew that she was somehow connected to Avery. It made her feel save and loved.

"Rory…Rory!" her thoughts were interrupted by Lorelai, who looked at her questionable.

"Hmmm…?"she mumbled breaking eye contact with the engraving and looking straight in Mom's sapphire blue orbs.

"You ready to go?" she asked, while she wrapped one arm around Rory's waist and examining closely her expression.

"Sure"she answered quickly, and slowly, with a swift glace back, at the with hundreds of daisies covered grave,they left the cemetery through one of the huge iron gates, which used to makeRory really frightened when she was smaller. When Rory and Lorelai finally left Hartford in their Jeep it was like somebody switched a button and everything was back to normal again. Jokes were pulled, pouting, ranting, mocking and the latest movies were discussed. Everything was back to the Gilmore's way of being and it would last until the next Sunday afternoon.

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This if my first Gilmore Girls fic. Sorry for the grammer mistakes but English is not my native language 


	2. Oh Avery, Avery oh

Chapter 2:

Avery Elizabeth Thompson was a girl of little words. She was pale, fragile, skinny and constantly afraid that she could do something wrong. Her beautiful blues eyes have lost the sparkle a long time ago, and now remained completely blank. All in all however, people would say that she was a gorgeous young girl. Wavy, long, dark hazel hair, a nose every woman would envy her, high cheekbones and a smile, which could light up a whole room. How to smile, however, she forgot a long time ago and her once rosy cheeks were now pale.

Things have not always been like that for sixteen-year-old Avery. The first six years of her life had been relatively happy. She had been adopted by Erica and Hank Thompson at the age of two, who weren't able to have kids on their own. They moved to a little semi-detached house to Litchfield and for the first time everything seemed to turn out well for little Avery Elizabeth.

She was a really smart, outgoing and a witty little girl, who learned quickly. At the age of four she read her first book and she absolutely loved kindergarten and couldn't wait until she would be able to go to school. She loved to play the piano, which Erica and Hank bought her for her fourth birthday, and more than anything did she love to sing. Her teachers in nursery school told her adoptive parents that Avery was one of the most intelligent kids they have ever had and she definitely was the star of the class.

But things didn't last like that very long. When Avery was six, her adoptive mother died in a car accident, on the way to pick up the little girl from school. At first she was confused why nobody would pick her up and after waiting hours for someone to get her she decided to walk the 10 km's from Litchfield Elementary School to her home. When she finally reached her house the first thing she received was no "Hello how was your day" but a slap in the face from Hank for being late. Avery had been devastated when she found out the truth from Hank and that was the moment the real misery started for the little girl.

Hank made her responsible for his wife's death and alcohol became an escape from reality for the man. Violence became part of Avery's life like the Amen in a prayer. From the early morning until the late evening she tried her best to make everything right, so that Hank wouldn't get angry. She cooked, she cleaned, she washed, she went to the market, she tidied, she did everything to escape the punches of her adoptive father. Some days were good, other days again were bad, and she constantly had to make up stories why she had bruises all over her body. She tried her best to cover it up with make up, so that nobody would find out the truth. 'Cause what should she do. She was a sixteen year old orphan, and better to have a real roof above her head than to live in a foster home, at least that's what she thought. So the centre of her life became Hank and to do everything in her power to please him.

"Here she was" Avery thought, while flipping through the very beginnings of her dairy, when things had still been happy and rosy for her. Her very first entry was on her fifth birthday, October 8th. She had been so excited over the fact that her parents had bought her her first book by Hermann Melville. Sure the fact that her first book by Melville was Moby Dick was definitely a cliché and probably everybody did it but it didn't matter at this time. It took her nearly a moth to read the whole book, because it was way to difficult for a five year old to read, but she had all the time in the world. When she finally finished it, she could hardly remember what the book was about but one thing she remembered for sure.

The feeling she had when she read about the narrator's emotions on the sea. She imagined how it felt to sail along the ocean, the feeling of the breeze in her face and the freedom, which tousled through her hair. Up till now she dreamed of the freedom she would hopefully find one day. Sometimes when Hank's abuses got too unbearable Avery would stand still for a moment, take in her surroundings and close her eyes. She would feel the soft wind stroke her hair and she would imagine how it felt if her real mother would caress her face. She would look at the diamond glints of the snow in winter and imagine what her mother looked like. She would feel the soft rain and cry bitterly. These tears were the only form of solace for her and nobody except herself would see those tears. At moments like these she sometimes felt connected, maybe connected to her mother. She had a warm, sparkly feeling in her gut and for a break of a second she experienced what it must feel like to be loved. Avery Elizabeth was once a happy child full of life and joy, but had become only a shadow of her former self.


	3. Kentucky fried chicken and a phone call

3. Chapter:

"Hey Burger Boy. Hellooooo. Over here. Paying customers. Starving. Need food. Coffee. Sugar intravenous. Burgers, pies and chilli fries. Oohhhhh….that rhymed. "Lorelai's voice echoed through the little diner in Stars Hollow.

"Burger, pies and chilli fries. Burger, pies and chilli fries. Burger, pies and chilli fries." Lorelai and Rory sang in chorus through Luke's.

"Lorelai, stop that. You are irritating the customers," a gruffy sounding voice interrupted her strain of babbling.

"Burger, pies and chilli fries." She said in a pouting voice and a trembling lip. "Oohhhhh….oh my god Rory, you know what I'm thinking? She suddenly screamed with a high-pitched excited voice.

"That Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston should have never broken up?" Rory said laughing.

"Noooooo. Dummy." She said in a "duh" voice. "And by the way, Angelina is way cooler. I mean, hey haven't you seen Tomb Raider? This woman can kick ass. But that's not what I wanted to say and besides don't mock Mummy here, the person, who…."

"Gave you the gift of life," they said in unison and by now the whole diner had their full attention.

"So when I said Burger, pies and chilli fries before, you remember?" Lorelai said with sparkling blue eyes.

"Very vaguely" Rory answered sarcastically.

"You know, I had to think of this weird song. You know the one where they make this funny moves while singing." Lorelai cried excitedly.

"Mc Donald's. Mc Donalds. Kentucky fried chicken and a pizza hut. Mc Donald's. Mc Donalds. Kentucky fried chicken and a pizza hut. Dummmdidumm…." She sang in her most presentable voice. When she was finally done with her ittle performance, she recieved a roaring applause from Rory.

"Thank you. Thank you. You are too kind." Lorelai said over and over again, grinning from ear to ear.

"Well that was her mother. The dazzling woman from whom she received her name and blood. " Rory thought laughing, while she clapped her hands together.

"That's it, no coffee for you today." Luke said, who had watched the whole show from behind the counter.

"But…But...But…Luke." she cried shocked, throwing her hand to her forehead. "Pretty please Luke. I'll be very good."

He responded with a simple: "Nope"

"Well if that is so I have to take more drastic measures, Mr. Luke." She said mischievously.

"Drastic Measures? What does that mean? A confused Luke asked as he finally walked over to hers and Rory's table.

"You do know that my babbling is infinite? She smiled at him.

"I never noticed." Luke said sarcastically, giving her a small smile.

"Well if this is so, I can give you a little taste of my skills." She said grinning devilishly.

"Alright. All right. Here you get your coffee. But one day you will die of a heart attack because of this."

"Yes. Yes. Yes." She said as she took a sip. "Oh, come to me elixir of heaven."

"Rory, please don't drink that stuff, you still have a chance. Only a small one but there is hope for you." Luke said pleadingly.

"Sorry, Luke. It's too late for me. There is no return back for me anymore." Rory said truthfully to Luke, when Lorelai's mobile phone started to ring, with the melody of Olivia Newton-Johns "If you love me let me know."

"Oh, I definitely need a new ring tone." She said, while searching trough her bag.

"What about the Kentucky fried chicken song." Rory suggested smilingly.

"Very funny, Missy."

"No cell phones in here." Luke shot at her, pointing to the exit door.

"Yeah. Yeah." Lorelai said, not really caring about Luke's no cell phones rule in the diner.

"Hello?" she said as she finally found her phone in her mess of lip-glosses, CD's and magazines.

"Yes that's me." She said, listening now closely to the person on the other end of the line.

"_My name is Barbara Stevens, I'm a nurse at Litchfield County. I'm not quite sure if you are the person we are looking for, but…the thing is, we have a young girl here, about sixteen years old. She is in really bad condition, and from her personal things we found out that her name is Avery Elizabeth Thompson. We phoned the police to find out about her parents or other relatives. Her adoptive mother is dead and the father is not reachable. So the police tried to find out where the real parents are. The odd thing is...it seems as if she doesn't really exist. No record about parents, brothers, sisters, etc. And…hello? You still there?_

"Yes. Yes. I'm." Lorelai answered hoarsely, which made look Rory and Luke up from their conversation. She looked like as if she had seen a ghost, she was white as a sheet.

"Mom?" Rory mouthed worried.

_"Good. So, I tipped in her first two names, plus the birth date in the hospital computer and ran a search. At first there was nothing. But then I extended my search to all hospitals in the vicinity of 30 km's and finally there was a hit. An Avery Elizabeth Gilmore, born on 8th October 1984. However the record showed that she died during birth. Is it possible by any means that she is your daughter? Hello? Hello? Ms. Gilmore?_

The mobile dropped to the floor, which made everyone look up.

"Mom? What's the matter? Mom, talk to me!" a by now very worried Rory said, lying her hand on her mom's shaking body. Never before had she seen her mom like that. In one break of a second she seemed smaller and paler.

"Lorelai?" Luke asked, while he also put his hand on her shoulder to stable her.

"Av…Ave…Avery" was the only thing she could stutter.

"Your daughter? Luke asked perplexed, not knowing why she would talk about her dead daughter right now.

"Hospital…she…alive…" she stammered, while tears were streaming down her face. She sobbed uncontrollably by now.

"What do you mean mom?" Rory asked absolutely frightened. "She must have misunderstood her. Right!" she thought. "She can't be alive. I saw her grave. I…"

"Where?" Luke asked. "Where is she Lorelai"?

"Litch…Litchfield County." She sobbed clinging to Luke.

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	4. Late night talk

Thanx ver much for the reviews!

**Epona 9009:** Well thank you very much for your tips and hints. Yes, I think you may be right that Lorelai was slightly out of character in the beginning. She probably wouldn't sing in front of all the people ;). Mmmhh...I thought she had called him lukey once to mock him. But maybe you are right. Anyways, thank you for your opinion and honesty.

**grace09:** Hey there. Thanx for your review and your kindness. Hope you are feeling well again. Have fun.

**Energeezer:** Well, hurray, here is the next chapter.

**lorelai gilmore danes1: **As you wish, here the next part.

**JavaJunkie22:** Thanks so much for your review. Yes, Strobe and Francine are the bad guys in the story :).

**Kate ():** Well I also think that Brad is a jerk. I didn't want to say that I like Angelina more than Jenniffer. They are both great actresses. I just used them for the story. No offense.

Oh and by the way. Rory and Avery are not identical twins.

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Chapter 4: 

"How is the girl?" Dr. Adams asked Nurse Stevens as he placed the last medical report for the day in the filing system. A 24 hour working shift lay behind him, and all he really wanted was a descent night of sleep and a hot shower right now. However, a long time ago the man had learned to put his own needs behind the needs of the patients and so he made a last short visit to the girl, who had been delivered to Litchfield County in the early hours of the morning.

"Anything new about relatives, friends…" he added, watching the Nurse curiously as she replaced the file he had put down a few moments ago. Obviously she had her own system of how the reports had to be arranged.

"The last time I checked, she had been asleep." She told him, as she finally gave him her full attention. "I called a woman named Lorelai Gilmore, and explained the situation but at some point she simply cut the connection. Maybe it was the shock or maybe she didn't want to have anything to do with our problem here. Isn't it weird that the orphanage has no records about parents or other relatives? It's like the girl has no past. Only the adoptive parents." She wondered, watching Dr. Adams reaction.

"Well, relatives or no, we have to find out, who did this to her. Nobody has three broken rips, a broken wrist, several concussions and bruises, when he stumbles. The girl is obviously afraid of someone. And I bet I know who it is." The man explained, tapping his fingers nervously on the sideboard of the reception area.

"The adoptive father?" Nurse Stevens suggested, while receiving a nod from the physician.

"She is obviously afraid of someone and who else could it be but the father." The man explained matter of fact. "She has nobody else except him, well, that's what the neighbours, who found her, told the police. If there are really no relatives, we have to gain her trust and try to make her speak. 'Cause if she doesn't tell us who is responsible for her injuries, the man will get away with what he has done to her and who says it won't happen again. Unfortunately, I doubt we will get anything out of her in her current state."

"I know what you mean, Doctor." She said in approval, nodding her head wildly. "Have you seen her face during the x-ray? There was not a single emotion written on her face. No signs of pain, fear, anxiety, or a single tear. Not one single tear." She repeated her last words shockingly.

"Right now we can't to anything but wait. Wait if the woman you called shows up or if the police finds out more." He said, while he got out of his work coat, making himself ready to leave the hospital. "If there are any complications, you can reach me on my pager. But for now all I want is to get home. Goodnight Mrs. Stevens." He said, waving his hand over his shoulder, leaving the hospital through the huge front door.

The nurse wished him a goodnight and started her nightly round to check on the patients. Her first stop was the room, which was just around the corner, room 505, Avery's room. Slowly she opened the door, examining the face of the girl, which was illuminated by the little lamp beside the bed. Watching her like that you would think that everything was all right. Sure she looked pale and fragile and way too skinny for a sixteen-year old. But what Nurse Stevens was really bothering weren't the physical injuries but the mental wounds. Of course, three broken ripswere painful as were bruises but all of these wounds would heal in time. Mental wounds however,were a very different chapter. The process of forgetting ten years of mistreatment and abuse was a hard and rocky path and maybe it would neverheal at all. Carefully, she stroked a curl out of her face, which made the sleeping girl wince.

"Poor girl" she thought as she made her way to the door, closing it slowly behind her.

* * *

Avery, however, wasn't asleep. How in the world could she sleep when her whole body ached with pain. Yes, she had heard every single word the doctor and the nurse were saying and it made her angry. 

"For everyone she was a victim, a pitiful, helpless victim. An orphan, growing up with a violent, alcohol addicted adoptive father. But she didn't want to be pitied. She didn't want to be seen as a helpless little child." She thought angrily, as she tried to get in a more comfortable position, which made her body ache all the more.

"How, could her life turn out like in one of these cheap soap operas. All she wanted to was to lead a normal, happy life. But maybe this was too much to ask for" She thought.

Sure being an orphan was bad enough but she got used to it a long time ago. Like every child she imagined of course, how it would be to have a real family. A loving mother, who would bring her to bed every evening and wake her gently in the morning. A dad, who would read stories to her, teach her how to ride a bike or build her atree house. Maybe a sister or a brother to have fun with. All these imaginations she gave up a long time ago. The ability to dream she lost somehow between Erica's death and the first slap in the face from Hank.

"Who needs dreams. We live in a real world and the real world is nothing like a dream." Avery thought, with her eyes closed. The pain got worse from minute to minute. She tried to take her mind off onto other things but beside the pain all she could think about was today's morning.

"_Wake up!" Hank's voice roared trough the little two-floor house in Litchfield. _

_Avery's eyes shot open and in a break of a second she was out of the bed rushing down into the kitchen. _

"_Oh god, he is already drunk" she thought frightened as she made her way down to where she had heard Hank's voice coming from. _

"_The light in the kitchen was switched on, the whole night" Hank said calmly, which was never a good sign. "How often do I have to tell you that money is not growing on trees. I'm paying for your food, your clothes, your education…" he screamed, and by now his face had the colour of a tomato. "And that's your thank? I let you live here for free and you simply spit on my generosity. All I ask of you in return is to manage the household. What the hell is so hard about managing the household. You are an unthankful brat, nothing more and I should have gotten rid of you a long time ago."_

"_I…I'm sorry" a deathly pale Avery whispered, as she pressed herself to the nearest wall. _

"_Shut up" he barked drunkenly, while taking the iron rod that was leaning beside the fireplace. Hank who saw only red by now approached her slowly and dangerously. _

_That was also the last thing Avery remembered, except for the muffled noise she heard every time the rod came crashing down on her and the breaking of bones. A noise she would never forget. _

A tear was rolling down Avery's cheek, a tear only she would let appear when she was alone. The nurse was right, she didn't show any emotions in front of others. Nobody would she ever show her real self again. Nobody would she ever trust again. Too big was the fear of being disappointed again.

"No, nobody would ever hurt her again." She thought, eyes still closed, as she listened to the hectic noises outside her room.

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Please review! 


	5. Deep in thoughts

Again thanx sooooooo much for the reviews. I'm so excited, every time I get a new one:-)

**JavaJunkie22:** Thanx very much for your review. Yes Hank is indeed a jerk :). Here the update.

**gilmoregirllover47:**Also thank you to you! Means very much!

**Tears4Chris:** Her the new chapter! Thanx for the interest.

**lorelai gilmore girls1:** Here is another sad chapter. Sorry. It will take some time until it really gets happy. Thank for your rewiev:)

**BlueJPlover:** Thank you soo much. Here is more :)! And yeah, Luke is the best!

**cenas-lil-hottie: **Thank you soo much for your kind review. Reviews really make my day!

**GoddessAnjanee:** Wow, thanx for reviewing every chapter and your opinion on the story. And by the way Fracine and Strobe are Christopher's parents not Lorelai's :-). No problem though!

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_Well this chapter is more like a filler. But I'm really trying to grasp the true feelings and emotions of the different persons who are involved. Next chapter will be the long awaited reunion! Promise. Hope you like it though!_

Chapter 5:

The drive to Litchfield County was accompanied by total silence. Not one word was spoken. One could nearly feel the tension that had built up in the green truck during the 30 minute ride from Stars Hollow.

As soon as the first shock had subsided Lorelai placed herself in utter silence on the passenger seat besides Luke and stared out of the window, into the far distance. Thousands of emotions and thoughts rotated through her head, that made it impossible to catch a single clear thought. She didn't want to deal with ifs, hows, whens and whys right now. Alls she wanted to do was to find out if the nurse said the truth. The truth that her baby was alive. That she had been alive all those sixteen years, while she lived in the believe of having lost her child, her little girl.

She couldn't even describe how she felt at the moment. Never before had she experienced such a mixture of emotions all at the same time. Not even tears of solace was she able to cry any more, because as soon as the first tears of realisation had subsided, she hadn't been able to make a clear distinction of what she was really feeling any more. Shock, hope, anxiety, anger, love and hate had all mixed up inside of her, leaving her like a complete emotional wreck.

The **shock** of the phone call that hit her like a punch in the stomach and made her whole body numb.

The **hope** that filled her like a flame stabbing through the darkness, and which left a sense of completion in her.

The **anxiety** that her hope was at the same time nothing more but a cruel illusion and as soon asshe would wake up from the gentle feeling of hope, she would find out that everything was nothing more but a dream.

The** anger** over the unawareness that her baby was in fact alive all these years, made her want to scream out loud.

The **love** and complete **devotion** only a mother could feel towards her child.

And finally the **hate** towards the people, who were responsible for this whole mess, for the chaos in her head.

Lorelai felt as if she would explode any minute from all these overwhelming feelings.

But while she battled her inner demons, Rory fought with her own fears and anxieties.

"She had a twin" she thought as the reality of the situation finally came crushing down on her.

"A twin sister!" The voice in her head practically screamed by now.

"There was someone out there who probably looked exactly like her. Who had her blue eyes, who had the same colour of hair, who had her facial features. Could she really live with the fact that there was a second Rory out there?" she thought, panic rising inside of her.

Rory's head was spinning from all the different possibilities. All her life long she lived in a world where her sister was dead, where she was an only child. It has always been only the two of them. Mom and herself. The Gilmore Girls. And now there was somebody out there, who was part of them, who belonged to them, who was bound to them. Bound to them like the snow was bound to winter, like Sigfried was bound to Roy, like coffee was bound to Lorelai Gilmore.

"Would it change things between her and her mom? Would this be the end of an era? The end of the Gilmore Girls era?" Rory wondered, while she wanted to kick herself at the same time for being such a egoist.

She should be happy about the fact that her twin sister was alive. Yes, to have a sister was amazing, but to have a twin sister was even more special. She had spent nine months of her life with another human being, on the closest possible space. They had shared food, warmth, and space for nine long months. They built a special connection during this close time together. She was indeed sure about the fact that they shared some kind of special bond, because sometimes it felt as if a part of her was missing. As if she could only reach completion by finding this second half of her.

She had been looking for this so called second part her whole life long. In Dean she finally found someone, whom she could share her love with, but still it didn't feel as if she had found this missing piece. No, this had nothing to do with the love a man and a woman shared and felt for each other. And though she really loved Dean, she knew that she wouldn't find completion in him. And for the first time she understood. It was in fact Avery, whom she felt connected to so often when she was alone.

"Yes having a sister was indeed something special." She decided for herself, as she took a close look at her mom for the very first time since they had left Stars Hollow.

"She really doesn't look good" Rory thought worriedly. And as she studied the expression of her mom more closely, it occurred to her for the very first time, what her mom must have gone through all those years. Rory imagined what if would feel like if her mom was taken from her in this very second. Honestly, she didn't even want to imagine what it would feel like. But she had to. She wanted to understand what was going on inside her mom. And only the simple power of imagining a life without the crazy Lorelai Gilmore, left an empty whole inside of her. She would truly loose a part of herself. She would loose her best friend, her guidepost, her role model. And now she understood what it was what her mother felt every time they would visit Avery's grave. But of course she couldn't fully understand the situation of loosing a child. She couldn't grasp the meaning of the pure and unconditional love a mother felt towards her kid. But maybe she would understand it one day, when she had children of her own. But for now she could only imagine what it felt like and it left her absolutely devastated.

While the Gilmore Girls were deep in thoughts about the meaning of life and death, Luke was deeply buried in his own strain of thoughts.

He was absolutely worried about his Gilmore Girls. They may not know it, but Lorelai and Rory meant the world to him. All those years Rory had been like a daughter for him and all those years he wished that Lorelai would for once see more than a simple friend in him.

He had always been there, all those years. He taught Rory how to ride a bike, he brought her mashed potatoes when she was sick, he helped Lorelai out when she had broken her leg. How could he open her eyes so that she would finally would look at him and see so much more than a friend.

"But all this doesn't matter right now" Luke thought as he was clinging tightly to the steering wheel, sweat dripping slowly from his forehead. The temperatures in the truck became from minute to minute more unbearable. Although it was already the end of August and the temperatures weren't that high any more, Luke guessed that the heat in the truck was more a combination of the incredible tension mixed with August's warmth.

His gaze drifted over to Lorelai for a second and for once he didn't see the strong independent woman, but the sixteen year old girl, who was afraid and unsure of herself. Afraid of how to make a life for her and her baby, afraid of what the future would bring.

He really asked himself what this Avery was like. Did she have Lorelai's amazing blue eyes, did she have her coffee addiction, or her craziness? It was really weird to imagine Lorelai with two kids. Or my, maybe she looked exactly like Rory. He always saw Rory as an individual, as one of a kind, simply unique. He couldn't imagine that there was someone out there, who was really like her. On the other hand there couldn't be enough kids like Rory, and he was absolutely anxious to meet this Avery.

All those thoughts accompanied the drive from Stars Hollow to Litchfield. Live changing things were soon going to occur in the lives of our favourite girls and things may never be the same as they were before.

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Please review! Pretty please :)! 


	6. Truth revealed

Chapter 6:

**samy2289:** Hey thanks for reading the story. It means much. Hope you like the next part.

**Synch14:** Also thank you to you, for reading and reviewing.

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**LukelovesLorelai:** Wow, thanx sooo much for your kind words. And I'm really glad you feel that way.

**Elizabeth-Intheblue:** Thank you for the review. It really made my day.

**roywthepoodles:** Here the promised update. And sorry to dissapoint you but the reunion will be in the next chapter. I know I said that it will be in this chappie but sometimes things turn out different when you are writing a story. Thank for the reveiw

**epona9009:** No problem that you haven't reviewed the last time :) And you can bet that they will be made responsible for their crime! Sorry, though that the reunion will not be in this chapter but the next one. Again, thanx for your opinon, it means a lot!

**grace09:**Also thanks for your kind review. Here the update.

**JavaJunkie22: **Hey thanks so much for reviewing regularly. I hope I won't dissapoint you!

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_Again thanks so much for all the reviews and I know I said that the reunion would be in this chapter. __I really wanted to meet them in this chapter. But I wrote and wrote and wrote and suddenly__Ihad written about 2500 words, enough to make a whole chapter. But next time, I promise, __they will meet. _

The 30 minute ride, that felt in fact more like a whole eternity, was nothing compared to the hell they were going through as they made their way down the hallway of the hospital. Lorelai was rushing like a lunatic round corner after corner, desperate to find her daughter. She had absolutely no clue where she was heading to or in which part of the hospital she was in right now. But that really didn't matter to her.

She would ran through every single hallway, she would storm in every room, hell she would burst into the operating room even if the world's most difficult heart surgery was performed in there. She couldn't care less about it. Her mind had switched off as soon as her mobile had hit the floor in Luke's Diner and it was better that way. Would she think about the hundred different questions and possibilities that popped up in her head, she would have gone nuts a while ago. So, she simply suppressed the thoughts and the voice in her head that just wanted to scream her pain out loud, and instead she ran. She ran as fast as she could, and if she had to look for her in every room, than so be it.

"Mom, slow down" Rory's desperate voice echoed from somewhere on the other end of the hall and interrupted her bad trip for a moment. She stopped and turned around to see her daughter rushing closely after Luke, completely out of breath.

"Mom please stop" she nearly begged her, while single tears rolled down her cheek. To see the desperation, confusion and fear in Rory's eyes, finally made her snap out from her trance-like-state and made her return into reality. She hadn't thought a moment about how Rory must feel. During the whole time she hadn't been able to catch a clear thought and she hadn't been able think about what must have went on inside of Rory.

"For god's sake, her twin sister was alive!" the voice in her head told her matter of fact. And during the whole time she only thought about herself, how this would affect only her life. Seeing her tear stained face and the anxiety that was practically written on her face, her motherly instincts kicked in and made her wake up from her egoism trip.

"Oh babe, I'm so sorry" Lorelai said hoarsely as she embraced her in a tight hug. Lovingly, she stroked her chestnut brown hair and pressed her as hard as she could to herself, as if there would be no tomorrow.

"I'm sorry" she whispered as she finally aloud herself to cry a few tears of solace. For a minute they allowed themselves to get lost in their hug and to forget about the live changing things that lay ahead of them. They had felt lost during the time they drove from Stars Hollow to Litchfield. They had felt truly lost because they didn't share their thoughts and emotions with each other. Something they always did, and which made their relationship so special. As they finally fell into an embrace, they found each other again because they had someone whom they could lean on to, someone to share their feelings with, someone who would take care of the enormous emotional burden that weighted on them like a dark cloud.

Time seemed to stand still for them, when Lorelai slowly loosened the embrace and carefully studied the expression on Rory's face. She could practically feel her daughters fears and doubts as she looked in Rory's sapphire blue eyes, her eyes. She lightly touched Rory's cheek to wipe away her tears and though no words were spoken, she assured her daughter through a single glance that everything was going to be all right. That they had each other, and everything else didn't matter.

Rory nodded to make her mom know that she understood. That she understood her pain and fears and that they would go through this together. Rory gave her mom another quick hug and let her gaze drift over their whereabouts.

"Mom, we are in the urology wing. I guess we won't find her here" Rory said, lightening the mood of the situation.

"I guess you are right" Lorelai answered, a small smile making itself appear on her face.

Luke, who had quietly watched the interaction between the two from a few feet away, wondered what exactly it was what he had seen. Through a single hug and eye contact, they had given each other new hope and strength. It was as if they had led a whole conversation through their eyes. He always had known that Lorelai and Rory shared a very special mother-daughter relationship but now he understood that it was so much more. They knew how to make the other feel better through a simple touch and they knew how to speak to the other through a simple glance. They needed each other like they needed oxygen and Luke hoped that although they had each other, he could give them some kind of solace with his presence. He would do anything he could to make the situation easier on them, that's what he always did, he helped out when others needed him.

"I'm sorry Sir, could you tell us where we would find a sixteen year old girl. Her name is Avery." Luke asked when a doctor suddenly rushed past them.

"Ask Mrs. Stevens. Left door, when you come into the entrance hall." The Doctor said as he proceeded to rush down the hall. He obviously was in a hurry to come to a patient.

"Thanks." Luke yelled after him.

"That's her. That is the name of the woman who called me" Lorelai told Luke, hope reflecting in her eyes.

"Come on, we go to the entrance hall, and ask there. It will bring us nowhere, if we rush from one end to another. We will find her way faster that way." He calmly said as he gestured Rory and Lorelai to follow him.

She nodded, giving Luke a small smile.

"He had always been there, and even now, on the most difficult day in her life, he was on her side." She thought, while she took Rory's hand in hers and followed Luke closely behind.

Ten minutes later, after having asked three people, where they would find this nurse Stevens, they reached the room which said nurse staff on it.

"I'm sorry you are not permitted to enter this room." A voice from behind told them. A 30 something, a little chubby looking woman approached them. "Only staff members are allowed in there." She told them, pointing at the door.

"Mam, listen, this is an emergency." Luke said gruffly, not wanting to upset Lorelai more than necessary.

"It's okay Luke, let me handle this." she said calmly, laying her hand on his shoulder.

"I'll be alright." She assured him and turned towards the woman.

"My name is Lorelai Gilmore and…." She was interrupted by an excited gasp.

"Oh my god, you are Lorelai Gilmore?" she asked with wide hopeful eyes. "I'm the one who called you. I'm nurse Stevens. I'm so very glad you are here." The woman told her, shaking Lorelai's hand violently.

"Is it really true? Is she really my Avery?" Lorelai asked her, praying to every higher power that it was true. She could feel Rory squeezing her hand tightly, assuring her that she was there for her, that she would go nowhere.

"I actually, just got a call from the police giving me new information on the case" Nurse Stevens explained, as she studied the face of the woman. "This in deed had to be the mother" she thought. "Avery was nearly an exact replica of her. And this girl here had to be her sister. There definitely was a resemblance"

"Case? Police? What does that mean?" Lorelai asked, as signs of fear appeared in her eyes, awaiting the absolute worst.

"Maybe, we should go somewhere quiet, where we can talk in private." Mrs. Stevens suggested, pointing towards the door. Luke, Lorelai and Rory followed her inside, which must have been the common room of the nurses, for coffee mugs and plates where strewn all over the place.

"Sorry for the mess" she said, as she thought about how she could tell them the terrible news the most easiest way.

"Was there an easy way, to talk about tragedies like that" she thought, taking a deep breath, to finally start to explain the circumstances.

* * *

Lorelai couldn't believe what she had just heard. Had she thought that things couldn't get worse any more before, than she was wrong, she was so wrong. Before she had thought about how difficult everything would turn out for Rory and her. That it would be hard to build up a whole new relationship to a person, who was her daughter but whom she hadn't known for sixteen long years. She had thought about Avery's reaction to the news that she had a new mother and sister in her life. She had thought about how afraid she was that she probably would never have the same relationship with her as she had with Rory. But now, all these doubts and worries didn't matter any more, because there were more important things to take care of. 

Her fears were replaced with anger, fury and hate towards the man who mistreated her baby.

"How dare he" she thought, shaking furiously, as she dug her nails into her hand. "How dare he touch her." She wished she could switch off her mind as she had done before, she wanted to escape from this nightmare and pretend that everything was alright. But the cruel reality hunted her like an animal, only waiting to crush her already wounded heart. At first she had thought she hadn't heard right. She whished that she hadn't heard her say that someone mistreated her girl for ten long years, that she misunderstood her saying that she had been beaten up with an iron rod and had now several broken rips, concussions and bruises. This could only be a bad dream. She would awake up any second because her Hello Kitty Alarm Clock would go off. But as hard as she tried to ignore the truth, she was brought back into reality, when the voice of Mrs. Steven interrupted her thoughts anew.

"I'm very sorry Ms. Gilmore, but there is something I haven't told you yet. As I said before there are new facts concerning the case. The police just told be a couple of minutes ago that they have found out who brought Avery to the orphanage all those years ago" the woman said, continuing her story. She had studied Lorelai's expression during the whole conversation, and she truly felt sorry for the woman. From minute to minute she seemed more miserable and smaller, but she deserved to know the facts, even if they were cruel and barbaric.

"The police spoke with the director of the institute and he could clearly remember the people who brought her, because they wished to stay anonymous. They left no address, no birth certificate, no names except for the baby's and this is normally uncommon" the woman explained taking a quick sip from the water glass in front of her.

"The police would have never found out about the people if they hadn't used a credit card to pay for food, clothing etc. in advantage. The director said he was very confused about why they would do this, for an orphanagewas a stately financed institute. Anyways, through this they could track down the owner of the credit card and therefore the kidnappers" the nurse told them taking a deep breath before revealing the names. (I'm not sure if this is possible, but we simply pretend it is:-)

Lorelai feared the worst, for a single moment she feared that her parents could have anything to with it, however she quickly dismissed this thought. They may have had their difficulties and problems with each other but they would never have done something like that to her. She felt terrible for even thinking something like that, she thought as she waited for the truth to be revealed.

"Strobe and Francine Hayden. Do you know these names?" she said, silence following her statement.

"I should be shocked about this, but I'm not" Lorelai slowly said as she processed the news. "They are the parents of her father," she calmly told her.

She couldn't believe that she reacted so calm about the news that Francine and Strobe were the reason for this whole ordeal but she always knew that they were not good people. She always felt unwelcomed in Christopher's house, and an icy chill would always ran down her spine when Francine or Strobe mustered her from head to toe, as if they would say "You are not good enough for our precious son". They were cold-hearted people whose only worries were their status in society. And as one could see they wouldn't even make halt of selling their grandchild.

"Mom, I don't believe this, you really think they would do something like that to you?" Rory asked shakingly, not believing what she had just heard. During the whole conversation she and Luke had sat quietly in their seats taking in the horrible details about Avery's life but that their own family had anything to do with a crime like that was too much for her. Could someone really be so cold-hearted and cruel as to make everybody believe that their grandchild is dead?

"To be honest Rory, yes I do believe that it was them" she told her apologetically. "They were afraid of what an illegitimate child would do to their status in society. This is what they are, and what they live for, what they didn't know however was that I would have twins. This made their nicely planned plan useless" she sighed, rubbing her forehead.

Her head hurt from all these intrigues and conspiracies. Yesterday they were an intact family. Not a perfect one but they had each other and that was all that mattered. Today however, they had to find out that an important part of their family was alive, hurt and mistreated over years and that somebody they were related to was responsible for the seemingly death of their grandchild.

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Please, please review! 


	7. The Meeting

**Nothing belongs to me, except for Avery!**

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Thanx to the reviewers! 

**roywthepoodles:** No, this time I'm not decieving you again :). Here finally the reunion.

**gilmoregirlslover47:**Thank you very much for the review. I'm glad youlike it.

**epona9009: **Wow, thanx again for your long review! Well I actually thought about calling her Victoria! But honestly, I don't like this name. I know a Victoria and I absolutely can't stand her. So ifI would have called her Victoria, then I would have always imagined her to look like this person I know :-). And I came up with Avery because I really really love this name. I think Lorelai has gone through so many different emotions so far, that she was simply too exhausted to blow up. And there will be a confronation with the Hayden's and then I can make her blow up if you want :).

**lorelai gilmore danes1:** Well, here now the update! Thanx for the review!

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Chapter 7:

"Can we see her now?" Lorelai finally brought herself to ask the woman, after the terrible news had slowly sunk in. She wanted to see her so badly. She wanted to tell her little girl that everything was going to be alright now. That her mom was now there to fix things. She wanted to hold her hand, and let her know that there was someone, whom she could lean onto, whom she could trust and that she never again had to go back to the place where she had been hurt so badly.

"Of course, you can," Mrs. Stevens said reassuringly, giving her a small nod to follow her.

"The last time I checked on her she was asleep. I tried the whole day long to win her trust, so that she would tell us what really happened," she went on explaining Avery's condition.

"But the girl has built up a wall around herself, which will be very hard to break through! The police needs her testimony to get this Mr. Thompson behind jail. But as long as she won't talk, nobody will stop the man from doing this again" she said, shaking her head in disgust.

Lorelai nodded understandingly as the nurse led them to room 505. One could nearly feel the nervousness that was hanging in the air like a dark, fat cloud. That was it, there was no turning back now. When they would go through this door, a new chapter in their lives would begin and things may never be the same again.

Rory nervously played with a strand of her hair, as she blankly stared at the door in front of her. She imagined thousand little scenarios that could happen in there in the next couple of minutes. She wished she could write one of her lists to plan things through. To plan what she could say to her sister when they would finally confront her with the truth. She really wished she had time to go things through in her head, just like she always did. That was her, things needed to be planned and written down. But there was no time for that right now, she knew this. Rory shut her eyes tightly to tear her gaze away from the door. She let her eyes drift over to Luke, who was standing closely at her side. She was so grateful that he was there.

"He had always been there" she thought as she took Luke's hand in hers. He may always seem a little bit harsh and gruffly but deep inside she knew that he was a loving and caring man and he cared about them. Luke had been more like a father to her than Christopher could ever be. That was clear to her now. He was there when they had their deeps but also when they had their highs. He knew her and her mom better than anyone else and that he was here with them right now, meant so much more than she could ever form in words.

Luke felt Rory's hand in his as he was standing by her side. He squeezed it tightly and lay his arm around her shoulders. He wished he could make this so much easier for them. He wanted to literary grasp some of their worries and load them on himself but he knew that this wasn't possible. Luke's strain of thoughts however was suddenly interrupted by Lorelai's voice.

"Thank you so much. We will take over things from her now" Lorelai told Mrs. Stevens, who nodded and quietly walked away.

"You are ready?" she asked Rory and Luke, trying her best to disguise her fear.

"I better wait outside. So you'll have your privacy" Luke said, letting go of Rory's hand, giving them a reassuringly smile.

"No Luke. No… I..I want you to come inside… I need you" Lorelai nearly whispered the last part, as she looked him straight into the eyes. She really needed him right now and she would never be able to really show him how grateful she was that he was there with them today,

"O…Okay" he answered shakingly, as her beautiful blue eyes, pierced right into his very soul. He would never understand want had happened in this break of a second but somehow he knew that he got a glimpse into her soul and from that moment on he understood. He understood her clearly and unconditionally and no words were needed to underline the beauty and pain of the moment.

Luke gave her a small understandingly smile, which said more than thousand words and finally followed Lorelai and Rory into the room.

* * *

A small lamp, which was situated beside the bed, illuminated the small room. In front of them lay a fragile and pale looking young girl. Her eyes were closed and a few dark chestnut curls were falling into her face. She was absolutely beautiful, nobody could deny this fact. 

She had a perfect formed nose, that was definitely Christopher's, Lorelai thought, as she studied the face of her daughter intensely, trying to memorize every single detail, as if this would be the only and last time she would be able to see her. High cheekbones, framed her features, which she inherited from her mother. The colour of her hair was much darker than Rory's. While Rory had light hazelnut brown hair, Avery's were a dark chestnut brown. Her hair were also way more curlier, more like hers. She was a little bit smaller than Rory, as far as she could tell from where she was standing.

One could definitely tell that she was Rory's sister, but nobody could know that she was in fact her twin. They looked very different but at the same a lot alike. Lorelai was glad that they weren't identical twins, that way everyone would see them as individuals with two different personalities.

No.. she didn't even know if her daughters were identical or not, because as soon as she had given birth to Avery, she had been taken away from her and she hadn't been able to catch a tiny glance of her baby at that time. She was young, afraid and completely exhausted from birth. Of course she had bombarded the doctor with loads of questions what had gone wrong and what complications he was talking about. But all she received as an answer were dozens of medical terms. She told him that she wanted to see her baby for only a short moment before she would be taken away from her forever, but the doctor said that the mental pressure would be way too high for a woman, who had just given birth.

She had no memories or pictures of her daughter and that was the most difficult thing for her. Every time she would stand in front of the grave and picture what she would have looked like. But now, finally, after all these years she saw her, she saw her clearly lying in front of her and nothing would separate them again.

All three of them were staring so intensively at her, as if they were afraid of loosing her again. Rory was completely mesmerized by her face. She had a lot of her mom's features and details, she thought. The whole time when she pictured their first meeting, she had thought that she would find an exact copy of her again. She felt truly relieved that things had turned out differently.

"Avery looks indeed like a mixture of me, mom, and dad" Rory thought astonished, wondering if she had her and her mom's blue eyes or Christopher's brown ones. While Rory was deeply caught in her own thoughts, Luke was standing in the background, mouth wide open.

"How could someone look so much alike Lorelai" he wondered, not being able to tear his gaze away from the girl. At the same time he also asked himself if this little girl in front of him had Lorelai's beautiful smile, coffee addiction, and character. Did she only look like her, or was she indeed her mother's daughter? Sure, she looked really pale and way too skinny for a sixteen year old, but he would change that or his name wouldn't be Luke Danes any more. He would give her extra portions of fries, would make her pancakes double the normal size and give her extra large pieces of pies. Yes, he would take care of this girl, he thought quietly.

Lorelai was the first one to snap out of their trance and quietly went over to Avery's bed. Lovingly, she stroked her dark curls out of her face, which made the girl stir up a little bit. Lorelai placed herself on the seat next to the bed, and took her small, cold hand in hers.

"She looks pale doesn't she!" Rory finally broke the silence, which was more a statement then question.

"Yeah she does" Lorelai nodded while she continued stroking her face. And then suddenly it happened! In a matter of a second Avery's eyes fluttered open and blue eyes met blues, mother met daughter, for the very first time.

* * *

Avery curiously looked at the woman in front of her. She was sure that she hadn't met her before but at the same time she seemed strangely familiar. 

"She really has pretty eyes," she thought as she observed her visitors. A tall man, with a green jacket and backward faced baseball cap stood in the background and closely beside him stood a girl that must have been her age. Slowly, she let her gaze drift over to the clock that read 10 pm in digital letters.

"Who would visit her at this time" she asked herself as she tried to sit up in a straight position. She winced in pain as she did so, having completely forgotten about her broken rips for a single moment. The woman who had heard her gasp, tried to support her with her hand behind her back, but she quickly winced away from her helping hand being not used to be touched from someone else despite her stepfather's punches. For a moment she studied the woman's face and she couldn't quiet identify what she saw in it. She could clearly see worry and complete devotion in her eyes. But for whom? Never before had somebody looked at her that way.

"Who are you?" Avery finally brought herself to ask, exhaustion swinging in her voice.

Lorelai, who had worriedly watched the girl as she clearly winced under her touch, understood for the first time how far her mental injuries reached. The slightest touch made her wince away.

"It would be a long, long way until Avery would trust them completely and blindly" she thought, when suddenly her voice cut through the thick silence of the room for the first time. It sounded weak and exhausted but for Lorelai it sounded like the first cry of a new born. Simply beautiful.

"My name is Lorelai Gilmore" she answered her question as she smiled lovingly into her face. Quietly she studied her eyes. They were different from hers and Rory's. Yes, her eyes were blue but it was as if mother nature had created a whole new colour for this girl. Never before had she seen such a deep shade of blue. It was a colour that reminded Lorelai of the depth of the ocean.

"Really amazing" she thought as she tried to remember what she actually wanted to say.

"These two behind me are my daughter Rory and my best friend Luke," she explained, turning her head over to them, who waved shyly from behind.

Avery nodded as she propped herself up on her elbows.

"Who were these people?" she wondered. "They clearly weren't from the police or the hospital. And there was something about that woman that made her feel, like she had never felt before. It was as if an enormous warmth surrounded her. She felt save and warm for the very first time in her life as far she could remember. There definitely was something about that woman, that caught her interest.

"Listen sweetheart" the woman suddenly said.

"Nobody had ever called her like that" she thought astonished as she listened intently to the woman's soothing words.

"I know that what I will tell you now will be very hard to believe and to understand for you. I just beg you to listen to me before you make any decisions. Please." Lorelai said pleadingly as she tried to take Avery's hand into hers. For a moment they stayed in that position before she quickly pulled her hand away. Lorelai gave her an understanding smile as she took a deep breath to finally reveal the truth.

"Sweetheart…I'm…" Lorelai's heart was pounding furiously inside of her. This was the hardest thing she had ever to do.

"I'm your…mom" she finally brought herself to say.

"I' know you must hate me now" Lorelai said, her eyes filling with painful tears.

"Oh god, Avery, all those years I thought you were dead. I didn't know that you were alive….I…" Lorelai sobbed by now uncontrollably. Luke and Rory, who had anxiously listened to her words from behind, quickly came to Lorelai's side, to stable her, to support her. Rory stroked her fingers through her mom's hair to sooth her.

"It's okay mom, we are here. Go on." Rory told her reassuringly, giving her a short hug. Lorelai slowly nodded and took a deep breath before she continued with her story.

"All those years ago when I gave birth to you and your sister" Lorelai pointed at Rory, who smiled at her and gave her a small wink.

"Yeah, that's Rory, your twin sister" Lorelai explained, as she watched happily the interaction between the two. Avery's eyes were fixed on Rory as soon as she had said the word sister and again blues eyes met blues eyes.

"So when I gave birth to you two, they told me that you had died due to complications." Lorelai explained. "I…I was devastated. I couldn't believe that something like that could happen to me. So, all those 16 long years I…no **we **lived in the believe that you were…dead" she gasped, slowly rubbing her hand over her aching forehead.

"Every single Sunday we would visit your grave and suddenly I get this phone call, telling me that you are alive ….oh god it was like somebody stabbed a knife into my heart," she said pained, as Avery's eyes were again fixed on her.

"You will never…you…I…oh god" she stammered, not being able to catch a clear thought any more. Lorelai closed her eyes for a moment, to collect her thoughts anew.

"God, this is so hard" she thought, as she opened her eyes again to go on.

"And then…. we have to find out that your own grandparents are responsible for this whole situation and that you had to…go through so much," she practically whispered by now, as new tears formed in her eyes.

"I'm sorry babe…I'm so sorry for everything. It's all my fault. I should have noticed that something was wrong about that doctor and the situation. But I was so young and….please don't hate me…" Lorelai couldn't talk any more, it felt as if she would explode any minute from the enormous guilt inside of her. If Luke and Rory hadn't been at her side she knew would have broken down a while ago.

* * *

Avery listened intently as the woman told her the unbelievable. She couldn't believe it. This familiar looking woman in front of her was her mother, her real mother! And the girl beside her, was her twin sister! For a moment Avery thought she would pass out from the enormous amount of news that came crashing down on her like a thunderstorm. 

All those years she thought she was an orphan and every time when she imagined how wonderful it must be to have a real family, she in deed had one. Excitement, joy and anger built up inside of her. Excitement and joy to finally have found someone whom she belonged to and anger towards the unfair fact that instead of those years of pain and fear she could have spent the time with her real family.

"Please don't hate me" the woman, her mother, begged her. Again she saw the worry and love in her eyes. And now she understood whom the worry and love was directed to. She worried about **her** and the love she saw was the love she felt for **her**! It was a strange new feeling for Avery to meet someone who truly cared about her. The only person, who really ever felt that way about her was Erica but that was a long long time ago. And now her real mother was here, begging her not to hate her.

Avery didn't really know how to react to this plea. Should she really open up to this woman, who said she was her mother? Was she able to open up to a person she didn't know? The past showed her that every time she trusted new people it ended in a complete disaster. She was truly afraid. She swore herself that nobody would hurt her again. Who would guarantee that this woman, who pretended to be her mother, and the girl, who seemed to be her sister wouldn't hurt her? No, she couldn't simply trust them and pretend that the last ten years had never happened.

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	8. A Decision

**Wow, I can't believe how many people reviewed. Thanx soooo very much!**

**LukelovesLorelai:** Thanx for your review and your kind compliment! Hope you keep reading!

**epona9009:** So Chris' eyes are blue. Oopps I didn't know this. They always looked brown to me, but I guess you are right, it's probably the light. Thanx for telling me about this "Are you ready" thing. Well, I guess it's more because English is not my native tongue, I try to avoid it in the future! Thank you far all your kind reviews, it means much. :-). Have a nice day.

**AthleticCharmedOne:** Thanx for thinking that way and your nice review! Keep on reading!

**Irish-Chick13:** Also thank you to you! It means a lot. And I feel really really flattered about the "great writer" part. Thanx again!

**lorelai gilmore danes1:** Like always, thanx for your review. Here another update!

**Synch14:** Thanks for reviewing. Lorelai will definitely get custudoy for Avery. I can tell you so much that in the end she absolutely won't hate her, more the opposite of it. :-).

**Gilmoregrl519:** Thank you for reviewing and finding it interesting. :-)

**lukeandlorealilove:** Yeah the Haydens are definitely the villains in the story. And Lorelai will get her revenge. :). Keep on reading. Thanx for the review.

**anna:** Thank you anna. That's sooo kind of you

**OyWithThePoodlesAlready13:** No problem for not reviewing earlier. I'm glad you did now. It means much. Yeah there will be some LL later on. Wow, I feel really really flattered by your words. Thanx sooo much again.

**JavaJunkie22:** Like always, thank for your review. Yes, Avery is in a really wierd position. I wouldn't want to know how I would react to such news :-). Keep on reading.

**kasluvsg1:** Eventually Avery will start to trust Lorelai and Rory, I can tell you that much. Thank you for your nice review.

**GoddessAnjanee:** Thanx for reviewing again. And thank your for your opinion and your kind words.

**sugary ssweet:** Hey there, thanx for reading and reviewing. Yeah, it's sad what happened to Avery, but you are right, there would be no story if I hadn't written it that way. There will also happy times for them, promise. And yeah, I love that name, Avery, too!

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_Alright, I know that this chapter is really really corny and schmaltzy :-) Maybe a bit too exaggerated. Sorry about that! But I kinda had no plan where I would go with this chapter. I wrote and wrote and that's what came out!_

Chapter 8:

The wheels in Avery's head rotated furiously, while her heart pounded like the one of a marathon runner, who had just finished his first iron man. She felt torn apart between two sides: trust and distrust, while at the same time her whole body ached from an unbearable pounding pain deep inside of her. But this time the reason were not her broken rips but something, Avery couldn't quiet tell. It was as if her intestines were tightening and pulling together. It was a stinging pain, that made it hard for her to breath. And suddenly it overcame her like a huge bitter tasting wave, which was washing over her. She wanted to cry, she had the unbelievable urge to cry as hard and bitterly as she had never before.

"Where was this coming from?" she thought, as she desperately tried as hard as she could to grit her teeth together.

Never before had she let her emotions rise up inside of her like that, except when she knew absolutely for sure that she was alone. In the deepest of the night, when the darkness and shadows of her room would surround her, then finally she would allow herself to cry single tears into the lonely night. Only then and really only then, would she allow herself to sob into the comforting pillow until it was completely drowned by her desperation. She had learned a long time ago how to bottle up her emotions in front of others and how to swallow her tears back down. It was an ability she had perfected over the years, so that nobody would find out the truth about her abusive stepfather.

"So what was happening now?" she asked herself, desperate to hide the emotions, which dangerously seemed to swell up.

A small sob escaped her lips as she silently prayed that nobody had heard it. She had to beware her unbreakable façade, which she had built up over all these years. She couldn't give in now, just because someone pretended to be her mother and sister. Too hard had she worked on this safety wall around herself, which would beware her from disappointment and pain. It wouldn't let emotions come near her, but it also wouldn't let any feelings come out of her.

"No, the wall had to be bewared and she couldn't let it break down now" she thought as she turned around so she would face the other side of the room. Suddenly she seemed to be able to repair the damages in her façade again and once again bottle up her real self inside of her.

"Looking into the eyes of that woman was a dangerous game" Avery realised, because as soon as she had torn her gaze away from her, everything was back to the old way. She would wait until they were gone, and only then when darkness surrounded her, only then she may let down her wall and cry.

* * *

Lorelai, for sure, had heard the little sob that had escaped her daughter's lips. The ears of a mother where as good as the eyes of a falcon, when it came to her child. Lorelai was studying Avery's reaction closely, and she definitely had seen the change in her eyes. For a break of a second she could swear that she had seen a tiny little sparkle light up, that underlined the beauty of her deep midnight blue orbs. She could clearly see the battle that was going on inside of her. Through a single glance Lorelai could tell that the real Avery, who was bottled up deep inside of her, wanted to escape for a short moment. She knew that the fragile girl in front of her was nothing more but a shadow of her former self and she would do everything in her power to bring back the real self of her daughter.

Yes, for a single moment, Lorelai had thought that she in deed would open up to her, this illusion however was destroyed as soon as she broke their eye contact and turned away from her. For the second time on that fateful day Lorelai felt as if somebody had stabbed a knife into her heart but she also knew that she couldn't force Avery's trust and that she needed time to let the news sink in.

Lorelai swallowed down her disappointment and like Avery she swallowed down the tears that where threatening to rise up. She had to be strong for her, for Avery's and Rory's sake. She would put her own needs behind herself, and instead would fully concentrate on the needs of her daughters. That's what a mother is supposed to do, right?

After this silent promise had slowly settled down in her mind, she turned over to Luke and Rory, who had been standing closely behind her the whole time, ready to stable her if she would break down. She gave them a nod, which signalled them to leave the room.

Before she followed them however, she took a last look at the girl in front of her and whispered, only for Avery audible:

"Please come home."

These were her last words before she left her daughter alone, so that she could process the reality of the situation. However, she wouldn't go far. She would place herself in front of the door and wait for her. She would wait as long as she had to, and if she had to sit there forever, then so be it.

* * *

Luke angrily kicked the coffee machine in front of him, which had just swallowed the 50 cent coin he had put in.

"Stupid machine" he muttered as he was searching his pockets for money.

"No…he couldn't make the situation easier on them and he also couldn't take the enormous emotional burden away, although he would happily oblige" he thought. "But he could bring them coffee. Coffee was always a good thing when it came to the Gilmore girls. This time however he would not lecture them how unhealthy the stuff was. This time he would simply let them have their coffee, without any further words."

As he made his way back with two mugs of steaming coffee in his hands, he found Lorelai and Rory in a tight embrace sitting on the bench in front of Avery's room. It nearly broke his heart, as he saw them like this, each of them searching solace in form of the other.

"She needs time babe" Lorelai told Rory soothingly, while she stroked rhythmically over the small of her back, like she had always done when she was still small.

"She will come around eventually" she promised Rory, although she wasn't so sure herself any more.

"God, mom! The look in her eyes….it really scared me!" Rory told her as she loosened herself out of her mom's hug.

It had deeply startled her as she had closely studied Avery just a few minute ago. As their eyes had connected for a break of a second, she indeed knew that every time she had felt this familiar soothing connection in the past, it really had been Avery's presence she had felt. As soon as they had entered that hospital, she instinctively knew that her sister was alive. It was as if a long lost part of herself had called for her and though she had truly felt scared at that moment, at the same time it was the most wonderful feeling she had ever experienced. The feeling of completion and true happiness. She knew that she had finally found what she had been looking for so long.

However, when she looked in those beautiful pained blue eyes of her twin sister, she suddenly felt so much more than joy and happiness but she could truly feel every single emotion inside of Avery. It scared her to death, how much pain was bottled up inside of her sister. It scared her to death, that one could feel such an intensity of painful emotions. The intensity of the pain she had to endure, the intensity of disappointment she had to experience, the intensity of fear, anxiety and worst of all hate, sucked the oxygen out of Rory's lungs for a moment. She couldn't breath, for the overwhelming emotions seemed to crush her lungs and her little heart.

Rory knew that Avery could only find peace with her help. She had to gain her trust, so that she would see that she indeed was the key to her absolution. Rory held the missing piece of Avery's soul inside of her, while Avery had Rory's. And only if they would find complete trust in each other, would they be able to exchange these missing parts. Then and only then could Avery start to forget her painful past because she would have someone, who would understand her fully and completely. She wouldn't be alone during the process of forgetting because she had an eternally connected twin sister, who would go through hell with her.

"You know, when our eyes connected that moment…" Rory stopped for a second to find the right words, to explain her mom what she truly felt. "It was as if I could feel what she felt. It was as if thousand of emotions came crushing down on me and for a moment I thought I might collapse from the intensity." she said as she rethoughtwhat had happened.

"You know... it is nearly the same with the both of us. Sometimes I can tell through a simple look at you what you feel and think and it is not only because we know each other blindly. No…it is because we have a special bond. And the same thing happened in there with Avery….just a hundred times more intensive…this sounds crazy doesn't it?" Rory said, sighing deeply.

Lorelai, who had closely listened to the words of her daughter, was touched by Rory's confession.

"You are twins Hon…I guess there is some kind of special connection between the two of you." Lorelai mused as she lovingly touched her cheek.

"I know it must be confusing…."

"No…no it isn't. For the first time I can see things really clear." Rory interrupted her words.

"You know, all those years, I felt something….I can't explain what it was…but I knew that there was somebody out there, who belonged to me and now that I'm here , I finally understand that it was her. For the first time I…I know it sounds stupid…but there is this feeling of near completion and I know it's because of Avery. Would she finally trust us…I know that everything would turn out okay…"Rory explained her mom, while she played with a strand of her hair, something she always did when she was nervous.

"No that doesn't sound stupid…absolutely not" Lorelai said in awe, as the words sunk in. "That's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard... Give her time Sweets…I'm sure that time will heel her wounds and there will be a time in the future where she will trust us…I'm sure" Lorelai told her daughter, but this time she believed her own words.

* * *

The clock beside thebed read 2:54 a.m. in big, red, digital letters. Avery couldn't sleep, even if she wanted to, she couldn't. Over and over again she went through the conversation that had taken place about 5 hours ago. She had heard Lorelai and Rory talk outside the room after they had left.

"She is right" she thought, even now she was astonished by the confession by her supposed-to-be sister.

"She had felt it too. All those years, it was Rory, in whom she had tried to find solace! And as their eyes suddenly met, she felt something too. However, didn't she feel pain like Rory had, but complete love, devotion, joy and happiness. It was as if Yin and Yang were collapsing into another and melt into one person. She felt the complete opposite of what her emotions represented. She felt the incredible love and devotion Rory shared with her mother and the joy and happiness her whole life was built around."

"Maybe I should give them a chance" she heard herself suddenly think, and she was amazed that these words were really coming from her.

Again she was torn apart between trust and distrust. She was deeply confused.

She had heard the words of Lorelai before she had left the room and the words echoed over and over again through her head.

"Please come home. Please come home…" it was like a mantra for Avery, while she philosophised over the simple word home.

What was a home? For her, it had always been a negative associated object. Somewhere, where she felt unloved and afraid. Maybe for once it could be something positive.

"Maybe I can trust them…no I can't…can I?" a battle raged in her head as everything started to spin around.

For a moment she lay still, clearing her mind and finally making a decision that would change her life.

"She would not let down her brick wall she had built up over the last ten years" she thought. "But…she would literary spoken break out one of the stones and see what happens. This first brick would be a step she never thought she would dare to risk, however, the overwhelming trust her mother and sister set in her, was worth a try."

She promised herself however, as soon as her trust would be abused again, she would fill the whole in her wall once again, and this time forever.

After this decision, she took a small piece of paper and wrote in straight letters on it: I'LL COME HOME".

Slowly she got out of the bed, while she gritted her teeth and painfully held her hand to her side. She made her way outside, where she was greeted with a sight that made her wall loose another stone. Her sister was safely wrapped in the arms of her mother, who both slept peacefully in this position. Yes, she had finally accepted the fact that her real mother and sister were in her life now.

"They had really waited outside her room the whole time long" she thought astonished, whileatiny tiny smile appeared on her face, the first one in years. She placed the message on the small table beside her mother and made her way back into the room, when she suddenly saw Luke's eyes flutter open. For a moment they stared at each other. Luke gave her a small wave as he continued to star at the small girl in front of him. To his surprise, he received the same gesture in return before she disappeared behind the door again.

Luke smiled like an idiot into the darkness of the hospital hallway. Now he knew that everything was going to be all right, and it made him truly happy.

* * *


	9. The Note

**BluJPlover:** :-) Thanx really much for your nice review!

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**sugary sweet:** I haven't actually thought about love interests yet. Any ideas:-) And yes I want her to go to Chilton. Thanx for your review and interest.

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**AthleticCharmedOne:** And finally also a big thank you to you. Keep reading. :-)

* * *

_Thank you too all the readers and reviewers out there! This chapter, turned out a little bit wierd I personally think. This week I just couldn't find inspiration so thischapter is more of a filler again. Next chapter will concentrate on town life, grandparents, life at home. More interesting I guess! _

Chapter 9:

Lorelai couldn't remember when she had been that happy the last time. As soon as she had woken up from the uncomfortable position, she and Rory had been sleeping in, she had noticed a little piece of paper, lying on the table beside her. Carefully, she leaned over to have a look at the mysteriously note, making sure she wouldn't wake Rory, who was still deeply slumbering in her lap. For a moment, her eyes had to adjust to the intensive light, which was shining through the huge glass windows of the hospital, before she let her eyes drift over the neatly written letters of the paper.

"I'LL COME HOME" Lorelai silently read out loud, trying to grasp the meaning of the message. She could have sworn she had heard a little "_Bing_" in her head as she finally realised, whoms note that was. She let out a high pitched squeak, but quickly covered her mouth with her hand, afraid to have woken up her sleeping daughter in her euphoria. Too late however, for Rory's eyes slowly fluttered open, and looked up to check what had made her mother cry out excitedly. Sleepily, she rubbed her eyes as she sat up, to see if everything was alright .

"Good morning. Hopefully, Milady had a descent night of sleep" she said jokingly in her typical Lorelai way of being.

"God…how can you be in such a mood this early" Rory said disgusted, as yesterday's events slowly came back to her. "Yesterday was not a dream, was it?" she stated, gently rubbing her aching neck. Falling asleep in that position had definitely been a big mistake.

"No it wasn't. But guess what I have found?" Lorelai said excitedly.

"One of those neck thingies?…I really need one right now."

"A neck brace?" Lorelai asked.

"Yeah…my neck is killing me. How could you let me fall asleep like that?" Rory said accusingly.

"Sorry daughter of mine. Guess again…no wait forget it! I'll show ya." She said as she smilingly gave her the piece of paper.

"Is that from…" Rory said astonished, as her eyes scanned over the note over and over again.

"Avery…yep" she finished her sentence, watching her daughter's reaction. "I know…it's just a tiny little step. But….it's a beginning. And I'm sure if we won't push her and act normally around her, she will trust us soon" Lorelai told her happily.

"She came to us…and it was **her** decision. God, I'm so happy about this." She squeaked as she tightly hugged Rory. In that same moment, Luke walked around the corner with two mugs of steaming hot coffee in his hands.

"Heaven has sent you" Lorelai said excitedly, as she let go of Rory and grabbed one of the mugs.

"I guess you feel better" Luke stated in his typical Luke gruffly voice.

He was glad that Lorelai was able to smile again. He really had been afraid, that yesterday's events would change something in Lorelai. He was afraid that she would loose her sense of humour and ability to smile, her inner Lorelai, as he would call it. And although he always pretended to be unnerved by her behaviour, it was in fact her unique personality, the mocking, pouting, ranting and joking, that made him love her so much. Yesterday had truly scared him, because for the first time, since he had known Lorelai, she seemed small and helpless. Yes it had scared him, but at the same time it had made him love her all the more because for once she had let down her wonder woman mask and had let him see everything of her. And while she had put down her mask for a second he had also put down the "Luke the gruffly diner owner" side of him. And so he prayed that after yesterday she would finally see him, not Luke the friend but the real Luke.

"I do in deed" Lorelai answered Luke's question and then showed him the note too.

"Oh yeah, that must have been around 3 a.m. I saw her, when she walked back into her room. She gave me small wave" he told her about the little nightly encounter.

"You should have woken me Luke" Lorelai said seriously and astonished at the same time that Avery would open up to him that much.

"Mmhhh..I couldn't bring it over me. You were so peacefully drooling on Rory's shoulder," he chuckled lightly.

"That is so….not true" Lorelai said indignantly, slapping him lightly on the shoulder.

"Uh, gross mom" Rory mumbled disgustedly into her coffee. "I told you….you are… drooling… in your sleep," she said between sips.

"Would we please stop that conversation about my drooling habits now" Lorelai sighed frustrated, as she laid her head back into her neck to enjoy this new feeling of happiness inside of her.

"Ah…good morning, I hope your night was not too bad" the voice of Mrs. Stevens suddenly interrupted there little banter.

"I remember better ones but thank you" Lorelai said politely, giving the nurse a little smile. "Can we take Avery with us today?" she quickly added.

"Medically seen there is no reason why she should stay here. She still needs rest…but she can also rest at home. However…the question is….will she come with you voluntarily?" the woman asked, with raised eyebrows.

"Don't worry, she said she would" Lorelai told her, not wanting to go further into the details.

"Oh….alright…I'm really surprised now…but that's great" the nurse said, excitement ringing in her voice. "I will make everything clear for her release." She told them before running off down the hallway.

"So I guess we better get her and then back into funky town" Lorelai said happily, as she lightly knocked on the door, before entering the room.

* * *

Avery had hardly slept that night, because she had been constantly questioning herself, if she had made the right decision in writing that note. About ten times she had caught herself getting up, wanting to go out and take the message back. But every time she had stopped herself from doing so, as she had watched the content looking silhouettes of her mother and sister in the darkness of the night. They seemed so calm and peaceful together and an unbelievable trust could be seen between the both of them. So, every time she would make her way back into bed again and start to think her decisions through anew. She wished she would have had a piece of paper where she could write one of her lists like she always did. However, she had used the only paper-like-material, the hospital's menu card for today's breakfast, to scribble down the message for her mother. 

Writing a list was something she had always done as long as she could think back. She would write down things she had to do and most importantly things she would say to other people. The constant oppression of her stepfather had really taken every spark of self-consciousness from her. It had become really difficult for Avery to lead a conversation without the anxiety of saying something wrong.

A list gave her a certain feeling of security and comfort. Through this lack of talking and being extremely shy and silent all the time, she never really had made friends. Nobody would talk to her, because they already knew that the conversation would only be one-sided.

Right now, she cursed the hospital for not having paper in their rooms. She so badly wanted to write down the things she could say to her mother and sister! Not being able to do so, made her completely nervous and supported her inability to fall asleep all the more. Until the early hours of the morning, when the first sunrays of a new promising day finally found their way over her porcelain looking face, she sat upright in bed and went through the things she would or could or should say to Rory and Lorelai. Around 8 a.m. her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a light knock on the door and in came her mother like a dazzling hazard.

"Morning morning morning beautiful" she said enthusiastically, happiness radiating from her face. "Ready to go home?"

Avery looked astonished up from her current position as she studied the action of her mother closely. Like yesterday she felt this incredibly feeling of comfort and security, when her mother was around her. This time, however, she didn't break the contact between them, like she had done yesterday. No, today she relished the comfortable new sensation she felt every time her new family surrounded her. So, Avery's eyes kept fixated on her newly found mother as she happily chattered with Rory and Luke, who followed closely behind.

"You know what I think" Lorelai asked Rory the second time this day.

"That you need to apologize for your drooling attack on me?" Rory smiled sheepishly at her.

"For the last time, could we drop that topic for once and all"? she answered, throwing her arms dramatically above her head.

"No…I thought that we could pull a major all nighter today. With fries, burgers, onion rings, ice cream, red vines, marshmallows, jelly beans, chocolate kisses, cookies, rolos, pizza,….Have I forgotten anything?" Lorelai asked with shining eyes, at a speed of 100 km per hour.

"Jeez, take a breath" Luke interrupted her rant.

"Just me, Rory, you…" she pointed at Avery, who stared at her completely perplexed.

"And also you Luke…are invited to our little food orgy" she told him.

"I don't know Lorelai" Luke said a little embarrassed while playing with his baseball cap.

"Oh come on Luke! It'll be fun…and if you want to you can even bring your rabbit food" Lorelai said while giving him her best pout.

"Rabbit food…what's that supposed to mean" he asked, although he already suspected what was going to come now.

"Food that grows on trees or on the floor….salad, broccoli, cabbage, tomatoes, potatoes…spinach…..aahhh…peas and carrots….aaaannnd zucchini….ahm…. beans, ….how long do you want me to go on" she sighed frustrated.

"Just wanted to see how long you would hold through" he smirked. "Actually I'm quiet surprised you could name so many vegetables considering the fact you hardly ever eat them.

"Vegetables, that was the word I was looking for" she said in a "duh" voice.

Avery, who had fascinated watched their little banter from the bed, sat there, mouth wide open, and wondered how one person could talk that much in such a small amount of time. Only listening to her words made her head spin. That woman was acting so differently than any other person she had ever met before. Never before had anyone paid so much attention to her or asked her to do something with him. Even though she didn't quiet know what a all nighter was, for the first time she had the slight feeling of belonging to somebody. And that was a terrific feeling.

"So are you okay with this tonight or don't you feel like having a movie night?" Lorelai then asked Avery.

"Oh my god…has she asked me a question?" Avery thought as panic started to rise up in her.

"Say something Avery….say something…come on they are waiting. Why aren't you saying anything?"

"Have you seen Willie Wonka before? You will love the Oompa Loompas! Everyone loves the Oompa Loompas, right?" she said more like a statement than a question, continuing herflow of questions, in which Avery seemed to drown any second.

"Yeah…but if love turns into insanity, like when you want to marry them…then I would really start to worry." Rory grinned mischievously.

"It was a dream alright…only a dream" she countered, nudging her side.

"Ahm…are you okay with it Hon?" Lorelai asked again, as she watched Avery, whose body seemed to shake slightly.

"Get a grip and say something." She told herself, as she finally nodded her head yes.

"Yes" she whispered silently.

"Great!" Lorelai said, as she quickly tried to change the topic, for Avery seemed really uncomfortable in her current state. "Then lets go home" she gave her daughter an encouraging smile before they finally left the hospital.

* * *

"People will be so excited to meet you" Lorelai told Avery, who was sitting beside Rory on the backseat of the car. 

"You will love Stars Hollow, believe me. You never get bored. Cute little shops and cafes…:"

"Crazy, people, annoying town meetings…" Luke continued.

"Stop it…don't tell her something like that" Lorelai said, rolling her eyes. "He is an old grumpy man, don't listen to him."

"Luke here owns a diner. We would have died a slow and painful death a long time ago, if Luke wouldn't feed us" she explained seriously.

"And then there is of course the library" Rory went on explaining the little city. "That's where I spend most of my time. I love reading…."

"That's the understatement of the year. This girl can't live without books." Lorelai interrupted her.

"Anyways, I have dozens of books. You can borrow some of mine. Do you like to read?" she asked her sister, who silently sat beside her.

"I do…..Had she said that out lout now?" she thought as she looked over to Rory.

"That's great!" Rory said.

"Obviously she had," she thought relieved.

"Mom, have you called grandma and grandpa?" Rory suddenly asked.

A small gasp could be heard from the front of the car. Lorelai had been so caught up in yesterday's events that she had completely forgotten to call her parents and tell them that their granddaughter was alive.

"Oh oh" she said turning back to Rory.

"They will be so mad that you haven't called them immediately." Rory said.

"They don't have to know, right?" she said mischievously, as Rory shook her head like a mother would do to her child.

"Sorry mom" Lorelai said sarcastically. "God, I haven't even called Sookie or the hotel. You really think that I have called my parents when I haven't even phoned them?" she asked.

"Meeting my parents, sweetheart, is such an enrichment on your personal life, an experience you don't want to miss….it is…

"Mom, stop it." Rory said, shaking her head. "They are not that bad. Really not, Avery."

"You know Avery…we need to find you a nickname." Lorelai said suddenly.

"Rory is actually short for Lorelai…don't ask how I came up with that...but I think we should hold on to this little tradition. So any suggestions?" she asked as she tried to think of something original.

"Ave…Ava…Ery…hmmmm….or Eli….Liz…Beth…ugh I can't believe I suggested that right now…oh….oh….I know…Ella. I think you look like a Ella! What do you think? Like, dislike?"

Avery stared at her mother as she tried to find a perfect nickname for her. Had anyone ever done such nice thing for her?

"Maybe for once, things would turn out right" Avery thought, as she watched her mother amused. She couldn't remember if she had ever looked that positively into the future and as she was sitting there, watching these people, who seemed to take such an interest in her, she was really glad that she had written that note. It was definitely the start of a new promising day, no future.

* * *


	10. The Girls are back in town Part 1

**Thanx once again to the reviewers! You make my day!**

**lukeandlorelailove**: Thank so much. I'm glad you liked the last chapter.

**Synch14:** Haha...sharp fingernails are dangerous:-) Thank you for the review!

**Epona9009:** Yes this chapter wasn't my best. I had hardly time to proveread it. I guess therefore the mistakes. And I get Ella from Elizabeth her second name. And sorry for the confusing speaking thinking mix up. I hope this chapter is better. Thanks for the review. :-)

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**cookiedough15:** Wow, thanx so much for your kind compliment. I'm glad you feel that way. My native language is German, I from Austria by the way ;-). The last chapter wasn't really written in my best English but if I need help in any future chaptersI will gladly come back to your offer. Thanks again. And thank for your awesome review.

* * *

_This chapter is a two parter. I couldn't bring all the happenings in one chapter. As for meeting all the town people or the grandparents. This will come in the next part. I hope that the point of view I have written is not too confusing. It's practically Avery remembering her time since she had come to Stars Hollow. Her thoughts about the past days are in italic and the present tense in normal letters. Hopefully not too confusing!_

Chapter 10:

The past days had been the most exciting and challenging time in Avery's whole life. Every day brought something new and different and you never knew what was going to come next, when you lived under one roof with the Gilmore girls. So many things had changed for Avery since she had first stepped out of Luke's truck in Stars Hollow. The last days, have gone by like a blur of emotions.

Right now, it was early morning and she sat calmly on the veranda of her new home. Her mother and sister were still deep asleep. She, however, couldn't anymore, for she had to clear her mind from the happenings of the past days. And as she sat there on the little bench, with the first sun rays touching her face, she tried to remember all the important moments that had taken place since she had come to Stars Hollow.

_In front of me stood a cute little house with a beautiful veranda, white walls, which might need a little painting, and a lawn, which hadn't been mowed in weeks. All in all, however, it reflected a cosy and welcoming atmosphere. For me, however, it was so much more than a cute looking house. It represented a new chance on life. It represented a future, far away from my abusive past. It represented everything I had ever wished for in life. Slowly I had let my eyes drift over the surroundings. To the right side of my new home was another house, which looked a little bit shabby but also very cute. The doors and windows seemed to be extra small, as if made for kids. And the garden was graced with dozens and dozens of garden gnomes, whoms eyes seemed to be fixed on every single movement I made. On one I could read the name Pierpont written on a little nameplate in his left hand. The whole scenery in front of me seemed to have been taken out from a book. Everything seemed calm and peaceful and in absolute harmony. _

_The perfect scene however was suddenly disturbed by the frantic screams of a woman, who came rushing out of the neighbour's house, heading into our direction. _

"_Lorelai! Lorelai! Thank god you are okay" the small, chubby looking woman cried as she stopped in front of us._

"_Moray and I…we have been…so worried" she said completely out of breath. "I knocked on your door, over and over again and I screamed Lorelai…Lorelai where are you but no answer. I called every single person in Star Hollow…nobody had seen ya…and then Patty told me that something happened in the diner, but she didn't know what…" She explained, still trying to catch her breath. _

"_Babette we are fine" Lorelai interrupted her flow of words. "Everything is fine now." She smiled, amused by the outburst of the little crazy woman in front of her, whose heart though was definitely on the right place. _

"_Moray they are back" she cried again, when a man, with a black hat and sunglasses, suddenly leaned out of the window. _

"_Okay Babs" he said as he leaned back inside and started to play the piano. _

"_So where have ya been? And who is this gorgeous looking young girl" Babette asked as she mustered me from head to toe. _

_I knew, that Lorelai was thinking about whether to tell her the truth about me or not. My mother had told me about Babette and a Miss Patty, Kirk, Taylor, Michel, Sookie and all the other citizens of Stars Hollow on our ride home. As far as I can remember, Babette was the gossip Queen of Stars Hollow as my mother had called her. _

"_The smallest news in her hands are dangerous. You can be sure that within a few hours the whole of Stars Hollow knows" she had told me seriously. "Babette tells Miss Patty and Patty tells East Side Tilley and then it's only a matter of time." I remember my mom's words. _

"_This Babette, is my daughter Avery. Avery Elizabeth Gilmore." She proudly said, having obviously decided to tell her the truth. _

_A sharp gasp could be heard from where Babette stood. "Your daughter" she asked astonished and in a high-pitched voice after the shock had subsided._

What then came however Avery could hardly remember. It had gone down in the overwhelming blur of emotions she had experienced over the week. All she knew was that during the excited chatter, gasps, oh and ahs from Babette, she had sunk into her own dream world as her eyes kept fixed on the house. She imagined herself sitting on the veranda, reading a book and drinking coffee together with her newly found family. She imagined herself running bare feet over the lawn like an excited little child and she tried to imagine what the inside of the house looked like. However, she was brought back into reality when the woman, whose name was Babette, suddenly grabbed her shoulders and shook her like a puppet.

"_Hello doll. Gosh, look at her! She looks like you, Lorelai!" Babette examined me. "Such a gorgeous girl. So you are Avery?" she asked me, excitement shimmering in her eyes. I could tell that she was burning to bring the news to this Miss Patty. _

_I nodded calmly, trying to escape her shaking hands on me. It was still new to me to be touched and spoken to like a normal person and it was hard to get used to this new sensation. _

"_We better go inside now, we have an exhausting night behind us" my mother saved me from my current position. _

"_Oh yes yes yes. Go inside. Rest. Tell me if you need anything." Babette said and I guess she was glad so because now she could spread the news over the whole town. _

The next thing Avery remembered was stepping through the door of her mother's and sister's house for the very first time. A moment to remember. She followed her mom, who had problems to get in her shoes over the lawn in one piece. Closely behind followed Rory and Luke.

_The house was a reflection of the unique personality of her mother. A cosy couch stood in the middle of the living room and a dozen of funny looking lamps, with apes on it or characters from "Hello Kitty" to Pumba the wart hawk from Lion King, gave the room its last touch. _

_I slowly made my way over to the fireplace to examine the photographs, which were standing on it. I could clearly feel the eyes of my mother, sister and Luke on me as I looked curiously at the pictures in front of me. Baby photos of Rory, photos of her first school day and photos of birthdays stood in a neatly arranged order beside one and the other. _

"_We will put photos of you up there" my mom suddenly said and I turned around to give her a small smile. I don't remember when I have smiled that much before in a single day. _

_Our next stop was the kitchen, which oddly seemed to be hardly used. My suspicion was confirmed immediately. _

"_This is our kitchen" my mother told me matter of fact. "Some people use kitchens to cook, we are not one of these people. We use it to hang out or to warm our socks in the oven. The fridge is also a very useful thing, we put in the rests of our movie nights or the delivery service" she told me completely serious. _

"_Obviously she meant what she said" I thought at this time, wondering what will come next. This woman was really one of a kind and I couldn't wait to learn more about her. I took a close look around, to be greeted with a whole set of Charlie's Angels mugs and Hello Kitty plates. _

"_Hello Kitty was obviously a favourite" I guessed. My gaze drifted slowly over to the half-open door, that connected the kitchen with another room. _

"_This is my room" Rory said. She must have watched me and followed my gaze to the door. I nodded in answer and blinked curiously into the room, my sister had opened and went into. From my current position I could only make out a bed and a desk with huge piles of papers on it. _

_As I stood there deep in thoughts, an enormous rush of emotions ran through my body and all I wanted to do in this very second was to let out this emotional explosion. I wanted to scream, laugh, and cry all at the same time. Coming into this house was like huge liberation for myself, it was as if somebody had freed me from my chains of indifference and apathy. Emotions bubbled up inside of me and it was as if a long forgotten part of me wanted to break out. My past life and experiences however couldn't let this happen. I couldn't bring myself to cry in front of this people, who treated me so nicely. I also couldn't bring myself to laugh out loud or scream. I had oppressed this kind of emotional outburst my whole life long and I'm not even sure if I'm able to do so? Was I able to laugh? To really laugh out loud and heartedly? _

_Like always I suppressed my feelings but this time it was different. It took me an enormous effort to swallow down this newly found emotions inside of me. What would happen though when this deeply buried side of myself would break out one day? Will I be able to laugh, cry and scream? _

_I shook myself up from my thoughts and finally followed Rory into her room. Never before had I seen so many books in one single place. I wouldn't imagine heaven any differently. It was pure bliss for me to see that my sister had obviously my passion for books in common. _

"_As I said before, you can borrow every book you want" she told me again and I nodded once again in answer. I felt really stupid for my lack of speaking. All I had said so far was "yes" and "I do". It was just that speaking to other people made me extremely nervous. I start to sweat and then I try to think really hard about what I could say. And while doing so an awkward silence builds up and I get even more nervous until the other person has enough and leaves me alone. That's what happened in my old school and this was also the reason I hadn't have any friends. The conversations would only be one sided. So once again I tried really hard to think about something I could say, when I suddenly discovered "Moby Dick by Herman Melville" on one of the shelves. For once I didn't think about what to say but my mouth simply started to speak. _

"_I…I have read Moby Dick" I said quietly, not believing what I have said right now. _

"_Yeah? I have read it about a year ago. Around the time when I started Chilton." Rory explained, while smiling at me warmly, not quiet believing I had really spoken. "When have you read it?" she asked me. _

_Once again my mouth opened magically, words flowing out like it was the most natural thing in the world. _

_  
"I read it when I was…five. Got it as a birthday present… took me a month…in the end though… I could hardly remember anything" I said in disbelieve over my own words. _

_Why was I talking so much? Why did I open up so much? Past experiences showed me that when you open yourself like a book, you are easily readable. And to be readable had never been a good thing. But despite my doubts I still heard myself talking. _

"_One thing however… I could remember. The…the…the amazing feeling of freedom and the passion the captain felt every time he was out on the sea. It's…my favourite book." I finally stopped myself from my outflow of words. _

_Embarrassed I looked down on my shoes. From the corner of my eyes, I could see my mother smiling relieved at Luke and also Rory shot our mom a joyous look. Thank god, the awkward silence was interrupted by my mother speaking. _

"_Now shall we continue our little guidance."_

The rest of the little tour was once again like a blur for Avery, probably because she was still shocked and mesmerized by her sudden flow of words. The next thing she remembered was Luke excusing himself, for he had to go to the diner but promising her mom he would be back for the movie night. And sitting with Rory on the sofa in the living room and listening to the conversation her mother led with her grandmother after having called her friend Sookie to tell her the news.

"_Do I really have to call her" she asked for the hundredth time in the last minute._

_  
"Mom!" Rory shot her a look that said more than thousands words. She was obviously the rational pole of the family. _

"_Yeah yeah yeah. But a picture of my mother's face when…"_

"_Mom!"_

"_Alright!" she said with a trembling limp when she finally dialled the number and pressed the button for the loud-speaker-system. _

"_Hello" the voice of a woman could be heard on the other side of the line. _

"_Mom?" _

"_Who is this?"_

"_Who else calls you mom. Or do you have any children I don't know anything about?" she asked. _

"_Lorelai you are tiring me" her grandmother countered. "What do you want? And no excuses about Friday dinner."_

"_Mom, maybe you should sit down for a moment."_

"_Lorelai?" she said unnerved. _

_"Do you sit?" _

"_I sit" she finally said. _

"_Alright, yesterday I got life changing news" her mother started. _

"_Oh my god, you are pregnant. I can't believe it Lorelai…"_

"_Mom! I'm not pregnant" she interrupted her mother's accusation. _

"_Oh…"_

"_Mom, yesterday we found out that Avery is alive. Your granddaughter is alive. She was all those years. Strobe and Francine have made us believe that she is dead and…_

Avery thought about a happier moment she had with her family so far. She didn't want to warm up the conversation and therefore her past once again. So she thought about a happy memory like the movie night they had on the same day.

"_Luke you can't deny that the Oompa Loompas aren't funny" her mother had cried at Luke, who had mumbled something that sounded like "children's movie". _

_I had to smile a little over the fact that she was defending fictional dwarves, who worked in a fictional chocolate factory of a fictional Willy Wonka, and who were paid with cocoa beans, in front of a 30 something grown up man. Not that I didn't like the movie, but that was too funny. _

_On the table in front of us was strewn so much food, I would probably be able to eat from about 3 months. Gosh, they had an appetite. I watched amazed as they ate one pizza slice after the other, as they grabbed Luke's burgers, as they swallowed chocolate and jelly beans, and all kind of other things you can imagine. I was still gnawing on my first burger and fries from Luke. And it was a really really good burger in deed. But I simply wasn't used to eating that much. Most of the time I was afraid to go down into the kitchen and grab something to eat. Over the time you simply get used to the small amount of food. _

"_Ella you should really eat more. You look skinny" my mother suddenly told me. _

"_Ella…I really loved the ring of this name" I thought as I gave her small nod. _

"_You like the name right? Otherwise I call you Avery of course." She said as she had examined my thoughtful expression. _

"_Yes I do" I said shyly, giving her small smile. _

"_Your mother is right, you should really eat more" Luke suddenly brought himself into the conversation. "I brought you an extra big piece of apple pie. I thought you would like it because your mother loves apple pie."_

"_I wouldn't consider it love but…" Lorelai defended herself._

"_You wrote an ode about apple pie, mom." Rory told her laughingly. _

"_And I also brought you an extra large mug of coffee. Because when you are really your mother's daughter, then you are addicted to coffee." Luke said. _

"_When you are right, then you are right" she said mischievously. _

"_Luke was right" I thought. "I loved coffee since I can think back." _

_Watching my mother and Luke I asked myself if they were a couple. He was there with her in the hospital, he waited with her outside my room the whole night, he gave her a ride, brought her food. Would a normal friend do something like that? _

_Until 1:00 a.m. we sat together on the couch, watching one movie after the other. At some point I must have fallen asleep because when I woke up the next morning I lay in my provisional camping bed, my mother had borrowed from Luke, which stood now in my new room. The room was my mother's sewing room but would be newly decorated and renovated only for me. _

"_How had I become so lucky? How did I deserve such a loving family?" I asked myself as I drifted back into sleep. _

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Hope you liked it! 


	11. The Girls are back in town Part 2

**Disclaimer: Once again nothing belongs to me. Except for Avery!**

**Thanks to all reviewers out there. I'm overwhelmed! **

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**Marcel-Marceau-chicken:** Thank you so much for the review. I've read your profile by the way, very orginal penname +gg+. 

**Synch14: **Thanks for the hint with the bonding thing. I followed your advice :-). Hope you like it. Thanx for the review once again.

**lorelai gilmore danes1:** In this chapter Avery talks more, as you asked. Thanks for all your kind reviews.

**AthleticCharmedOne:** Thanks so much for your review. And sorry the Friday night dinner didn't fit into this chapter any more. But will come in the next one.

**lukeandlorealilove:** In this chapter Avey feels slightly more acclimated, as you hoped. And you are right, I would be overwhelmed too by their behaviour. +gg+ Thanks for the review.

**zetaphi7: **Thank you zetaphi. Hope you keep reading.

**JavaJunkie22:** Thank you once again for your regularly review. Here the update.

**Me: **Asyou wish here is more and thank you for the review!

**Tonje:** Wow, thank you Tonje for reading the whole ten chapters in one breath. Must have taken you a while. Thank you for taking the time for reading and reviewing!

**roywthepoodles:** Gosh, of course you are right. Moby Dick is by Melville. I feel really embarrassed now. It's just I read this book right now by Ian Wallace and I mixed it up. Thanks for pointing it out. I changed it already. Thanks for your review!

**gottalovethegilmores:** Thank you so much for the review. And yes in this chapter she opens up a little bit so she can experience some of the good things, as you wrote.

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This is my longest chapter so far. I'm so proud +gg+. Unfortunately the Friday night dinner didn't fit into this one any more, so it will get its own chapter. Have fun!

_Chapter 11:_

_Around 8:00 a.m. a strange feeling, I couldn't quite identify at that moment, had woken me for the second time this morning. Slowly, I opened my sleepy eyes to be blinded by the early sun rays of the day. For a moment, I had to get used to the brightness of this new morning. Finally, my eyes flattered open and my blurry surroundings sharpened in an instant of a second. The unfamiliarity of the room freaked me out for a single moment but just until the events of the past two days came back and nearly seemed to over roll me._

_Still dizzy, I rubbed my eyes, to be suddenly greeted with another presence in my room. My mother sat cross-legged on a small chair, watching me from her current position. My eyes drifted over to hers and for a moment there was nothing but the calming sensation our presences had on each other. Blue eyes linked with blue eyes, as a small smile escaped my lips. My mother returned my gesture as she suddenly stood up and came over to let herself fall onto the end of my bed. She patted my hand that still hung loose out of the bed and finally broke the thick silence of the morning. _

"_Ella…I know that these past two days have been really hard on you. They have been hard on all of us. And so many things have changed for you in a matter of a second. But we really have to talk about the still unspoken things in your life." My mom started her flow of words, taking a small breath. _

"_Do you drink your coffee black or white? Junk food eater or health freak? Cooking spoon or remote control? Casablanca or Breakfast at Tiffany's? Jelly beans or red vines? Pizza or Chinese food? Willy Wonka or the Oompa Loompas? Summer or winter type? Thermo underwear or summer dress? Titanic crier or not? Madonna and Sean Penn or Madonna and Guy Ritchie? Jennifer Aniston or Angelina Jolie? Would you rather go to a debutant ball or rather slowly rip out your intestines? DAR or jumping off a bridge? Shopping or camping? Golfing or debate club? Early bird or night owl? Nick and Nora or Sid and Nancy? Bangles oooorrr Bangles? Patrick Swazey or John Travolta? And most important of all what's your attitude towards snow?" she said in one breath, while I helplessly tried to follow her words. _

_I was completely surprised by her unpredictable mass of questions that felt more like an uncontrollably pounding hammer every time she asked me something. I clearly hadn't seen that coming and hadn't awaited these kind of questions when she started to talk in this really serious sounding voice a few moments ago. While I still sat totally mesmerized in bed, she grinned at me sheepishly because now I was practically forced to speak more than three words in one row. So, I took a deep breath and tried to remember the order of questions that had shockingly burned into my brain. _

"_White. Junk food. Remote control. Casablanca. Jelly beans. Pizza. Oompa Loompas. Summer type. The dress. Haven't seen Titanic. Undecided about Madonna. Jennifer Aniston. What's a debutant ball? What's the DAR? Shopping. Golfing. Early bird. Who are Sid, Nancy, Nick and Nora? The next one is hard: I would say the Bangles. Patrick Swazey. And my attitude towards snow? Mmmmmhhh… I'm not sure." I finished my up til now most spoken words in a single conversation. _

"_You have passed the Gilmore girls test with an astonishing outcome of 78" she said jokingly. "But I'm sure your score will improve after you've seen Titanic, Sid and Nancy and the Thin Man, in which Nick and Nora star by the way. And of course after you have enjoyed the ultimate pleasure of meeting my parents. Then you will also know what I meant with DAR and debutant ball." She continued, though I was not quite sure if I understood everything she had just told me. _

"_And believe me when I tell you, that as soon as you have met my mother for the very first time, you want to jump off a bridge or rip out your intestines." She said seriously, but then started to grin mischievously. _

"_No, I'm just joking" she then said, having obviously seen my confused expression. _

"_The thing about your grandparents is…they never got over the fact that their only daughter has gotten herself pregnant at 16. You must know, that they come from a very different world, then we are living in." she explained, this time however with a real serious expression._

"_Your grandparents are good people, never doubt that, but they have other goals and views on life then I or you have. They wanted a daughter, who should attend balls, and galas, and charity organizations. They wanted a daughter, who should be part of the DAR, the Daughters of the American Revolution, by the way. A daughter, who should marry rich and be a perfect member of high society." _

"_But… this kind of life is and was not what I imagined my life to be. I was a rebellious teenager. I rebelled against my parent's rules, about their way of living about everything this world stood for. When I got pregnant, however, everything changed. Everything changed when that strip turned pink. And one thing you must believe me, I never regretted the both of you. You and Rory, are the best things in my life. You gave my life a meaning…It's…just not fair that we lost 16 years of our time together " she sadly said, her eyes bearing a pained expression._

_From one moment to the other she seemed to have aged about ten years. A veil of sadness hang over her normally happy face and her youthful nature disappeared for a second. She sighed deeply and tried to overplay her feelings, with one of her shining smiles. But she couldn't deceive me. 'Cause I'm practically the master of suppressed feelings and pretended happy expressions. As I closely watched this unusual side of my mother, I suddenly felt an urging desire to hug her. To comfort her and be there for her. This was once again a completely new and strange feeling that spread throughout my body. And again I couldn't identify where this was coming from. How do you call a warm, comforting, desiring, absolutely overwhelming and perfect feeling? A feeling of pure bliss and happiness? A feeling you never want to stop again? _

_I didn't further think about it but let my body language speak for myself. Once again I gave her a smile, but this time it was real and pure and then I leaned forward to hug my mom for the very first time. I embraced in her in an overwhelming tight hug and to my surprise it felt like the most natural thing in the world. I felt her arms tighten around me as we stayed in this position for several minutes. I felt safe, protected, happy and content. The feeling I had wondered about a few seconds ago, intensified all the more as we clung to each other tightly. And suddenly I perfectly knew what I felt. It was the top feeling of the scale of all feelings. Poems and songs, books and novels had been written about it. _

_Yes it was love what I felt. Pure and unconditional love. And I wished it could stay that way forever. _

"_I love you Hon" I heard my mother whisper into my hair. _

"_Yes, I love you too" I thought, but somehow I was unable to speak it out loud. Too overwhelming was this whole new situation. _

"This had been the number one moment on her list of new experiences and impressions, of the last days." Avery thought, as she still sat on the veranda, which was bathed in perfect sunlight by now. She closed her eyes to enjoy the gentle rays on her skin and breathed in the fresh, calming air. A small fresh chill lay in it, a messenger for the soon to come autumn. But not only had the morning breeze lost its gentle warm breath but Avery had slightly lost the shimmer of palenesson her face. The rosé colour, which had once graced her facial features, slowly found its way back. Happiness radiated from her eyes and the once beaming sparkle had nearly returned. As she sat there in perfect harmony with herself, she continued thinking about the important happenings of the past days.

_On that same morning my mom, Rory and I went to Luke's diner to have breakfast. All eyes seemed to be fixated on me as we made our way through the cute little city. One could practically hear every word of the whispering people, who seemed to have nothing better to do but watch every single move we made. I was relieved, as we finally arrived at Luke's, a nice looking diner in the centre of the city. We placed ourselves on a table near the door, because referring to my mother, you had the best view from there. As I wanted to prove her statement, and let my eyes drift over to the big glass windows, the whole town suddenly seemed to stand out there, pretending to talk with one and each other. I slowly turned my head over to face my mother, but from the corner of my eyes I still watched the crazy town people. As soon as they thought I wouldn't see them, their noses practically were glued to the glass. _

"_Is that normal" I asked, pointing to the window, as my mom and sister followed my directions. _

"_Totally normal" they said in unison, obviously unimpressed by so much craziness. _

"_What are they up to now" the familiar voice of Luke suddenly echoed through the diner. He put down the two plates of ham and eggs, he had balanced in his hands, and angrily stormed out of the door. "_

"_Showtime" my mom cheerfully said as we watched the following scenes. _

"_TAYLOR" Luke barked grumpily. "What the hell are you doing out here!" _

"_We just wanted to inspect the new citizen" Taylor replied. _

"_WHAT?" Luke continued in full volume. _

"_The new girl, Luke, or haven't you noticed her sitting in there" Taylor said matter of fact. "Everybody knows, that every new citizen has to personally visit me and introduce himself."_

"_Of course I have noticed her" he gestured vigorously into my direction. "And why should she introduce herself to **you**?" he said frantically, pointing his hand from me to Taylor. _

"_Luke, Luke, Luke" Taylor addressed him like a little child. "Who am I?"_

"_What?" he practically spat. _

"_Who am I Luke?"_

"_You are crazy, insane, lunatic, maniacal, mad, Taylor!" Luke shouted. _

"_No! I'm the head of this city" he explained, seemingly unaffected by Luke's outburst. _

"_Every new citizen has to come to me. I observe him and decide if he fits into our community." _

"_Oh my God, look at the vein on Luke's forehead, it's pulsating" my mom cried amused. _

"_This is crazy. Totally crazy, Taylor. Since when do people have to come to you!" Luke gestured wildly. _

"_Luke Luke Luke. Everything stands in the new city enactment. Would you read it…"_

"_Call me one more time Luke, and I forget myself Taylor. Screw your enactment and listen to me…You will leave the girl alone. Are we clear? If not…we will soon have another head of the city…+pause+... because the old one died choking from the enactment…" Luke yelled, his head red like a tomato, as he stormed back inside. _

"_Is there coming smoke out of his ears." Rory seriously asked us, unable to hold back her fit of laughter any longer. _

_I had to admit that I have never seen such a hilarious scene before. Slowly but surely I started to understand my mom's and sister's love for this city. In Stars Hollow you never get bored. There was always something going on. Crazy neighbours, frightening garden gnomes, funny movie nights, weird towns people, Taylor, Luke and so on and so on. And all of this happened in two days. I was highly looking forward to spending more time here. _

Avery had to laugh out loud alone at the thought of this crazy morning. It was only a quite chuckle but it was a beginning. Avery was still amazed by herself how quickly she had opened up to this whole new situation. And another smile escaped her lips as she thought about the bizarre characters she got to know on their way to her mother's workplace, the Independence Inn.

"_One, two, three…flutter, flutter, flutter…four, five, six…flutter, flutter, flutter" the voice of a woman could be heard as we passed obviously the dance studio of the town. _

"_Heads up…arms to your waist…balance ladies…balance…always keep your balance. I told you last week…if the book falls off your heads, Harry Potter will die…and yes Macy…so will Ron and Hermione" the woman continued her lecture._

_A 50 something, red-haired, well-nourished lady in a blue poncho stood in the door of the studio and declared her instructions to the pupils. So, this was the famous Miss Patty. _

"_Aaahhhh…Lorelai. Good to see you" she cried excited. Our excitement, however, fell. _

"_And you must be Avery" she said as she took my chin in one hand and turned my head from one side to the other to examine me very closely._

"_What a gorgeous girl! Such a lovely skin, it's like porcelain. You must have dozens of admirers" she came to the conclusion. _

"_Ah…I bet so…ahm…Patty we really have to go now…we are in a hurry. Like always it was a pleasure talking to you" my mother quickly saved me from my misery as we continued our walk to the Inn. _

"_Do you dance? I bet you do" Patty called after tus. "Look at this firm butt" she said more to herself, but still in full volume. _

"This was definitely a moment to remember" Avery thought. She was still completely alone outside of the veranda. Not even their neighbours, Babette and Moray, were up. Avery glanced down on her watch to find out that it was 6:24 by now. Yes, she was an early bird but getting up at 6:00 a.m. was even for her, a tic to soon. The calmness and peacefulness of the hour, however, were worth it. Back in Litchfield there was no such thing as peacefulness. More the complete opposite of it. Screaming, shouting and punches stood on the agenda. Hardly ever was she able to enjoy a moment for herself.

It was the first time since she had met her family, that she had thought back on her past life and therefore Hank. All the life changing events that had taken place in her life had distracted her from past horrors. She knew, however, that she couldn't avoid that topic forever. She also knew that sooner or later her mom would ask her questions. Questions she wasn't sure she was able to answer. Yesterday she had overheard a conversation between her mom and the police on the telephone. She desperately tried to persuade them to give her more time. But would time really give her answers and reveal the truth? She felt bad for her mother. All she did was supporting her, enabling her a new future and giving her her undivided love. But talking about her past was a chapter of her life, she wasn't sure she could ever talk openly about.

Avery shook her head slightly to banish the unpleasant thoughts and instead concentrate on happier moments.

"_Sookie! Sweetie. We are here!" my mother called her best friend as we made our way into the kitchen of the Independence Inn. It was a really beautiful hotel with a huge wide park, a lake, and rosebushes were planted beside the driveway, which gave the scenery its last perfect touch. _

"_So this was the place where my mom and Rory grew up" I quietly thought. "That's where I would have grown up, if…" I quickly dismissed my strain of thoughts, not wanting to hold onto ifs and whens and whys. _

"_Coming" a female voice could be heard from a nearby room, probably the larder. _

_The door opened and out came a small, funny but friendly looking woman. Her reddish hair was tied up in two pigtails and a dishtowel hung over her right shoulder, which she artistically threw to her left side. It landed on the stove and immediately caught fire. Nobody however seemed to be impressed or alerted about the fact that a burning cloth was lying in the middle of the kitchen. In the same moment as I wanted to point out the obviously only for me existing danger, one of the cooks poured a glass of water over the stove. I thought about mentioning the almost catastrophe but decided against it because obviously it seemed to be the most normal everyday thing in the world.. _

_While I stood there, totally panicking, Sookie tightly hugged my mom and Rory. She hesitated for a moment but then also embraced me like a long lost friend. I smiled shyly about her gesture and to my astonishment returned it. _

"_So you are Avery!" she said excitedly, mustering me from head to toe. By now I was used to the watchful eyes of Stars Hollows citizens. _

"_Uuhhhh…this is so exciting!" she squeaked, while clapping her hands together. "This is like in this one episode of "The Bold and the Beautiful", when Brook finds out that her child, who she thought was dead, suddenly stood in front of her door…or was it Stephanie's? Ahm…anyways…ahm… the kid stood in front of her door…and she was so happy that her daughter was back. But the truth was that it wasn't her daughter but Sheila bribed the kid to play her daughter…to spy her out and…_

"_Sookie!" My mom waved her hand in front of Sookie's face. _

"_Sorry…maybe it wasn't exactly like in your case." She laughed nervously. _

"_Avery. Such a beautiful name" Sookie quickly changed the topic. _

"_We call her Ella. We got it from Elizabeth, her second name" my mom told her proudly. _

"_Ella...oooohhh…beautiful…like Ella Fitzgerald. Didn't she have an amazing voice" Sookie dreamily said. _

_I really had to smile about that woman. She was so funny and cute, simply loveable. She remembered me a little bit of my mom. At that moment a man in a grey suit came into the kitchen. _

"_Ahh…ha-ppy…fa-mi-ly…re-union" the man said in a thick French accent. _

"_Avery may I introduce you to Michel our concierge. Michel that's Avery or Ella, my daughter" mom said._

"_Ho-w nice" Michel said sarcastically. "Not…all of us…ha-ve…ti-me for fa-mi-ly ga-ther-ings how-ever. O-ther peo-ple ha-ve to work" Michel said crankily. _

"_Someone is really cranky this morning" mom exclaimed. "Hasn't he had his "unyolked" scrambled eggs yet?" she asked Sookie._

"_Nope" she replied._

"_Quick Sookie, we have to give him whole-wheat intravenous" she said jokingly. _

"_Ver-ry fun-ny. But I-am the one who will lau-gh when you are old and wri-nkly and my skin is sti-ll tight and firm. And th-en I wi-ll ju-mp on your gr-aves and lau-gh" he said, leaving the room._

"_That's Michel" my mother exclaimed the strange encounter. _

"_Lunch! I'm making you lunch!" Sookie suddenly screamed. _

"_Sookie…we just had breakfast" my mother started but it was useless. _

"_Brussels sprouts with cream cheese and toast almonds…no no no roasted chicken with prusciutto and green olives and and and a zucchini sour cream soup and as desert chocolate mint truffles or or or pumpkin chiffon pie" she said gesturing wildly with her hands. _

"_Nod your head and smile" my mom instructed me, while she patted her hand on my shoulder. _

"What a crazy loveable woman" Avery thought as she remembered this day. Within a week she had learned to love this woman. Every day she would visit them and bring Avery dozens of courses of different dishes because referring to Sookie, she was way too skinny. Slowly but surely she adjusted to the crazy eating habits of the Gilmore's. On Thursday as Lorelai and Rory led a heated discussion over whether they would have pizza of Chinese food, Avery suggested that she could cook something for them. Their faces were priceless.

"_We had pizza just yesterday" Rory complained. _

"_But…I…want…pizza!" mom said stubbornly like a little child. _

"_And I want Chinese food" Rory replied. _

_The discussion had run an unbeaten 30 minutes before I finally decided to interrupt the very mature discussion. _

"_I could cook something" I said. Had I foreseen their reactions however I would have swallowed down my suggestion in an instant of a second._

_Two sharp gasps could be heard, from where a few moments ago, only the banter of mother and daughter had rung throughout the living room. Huge horrified eyes watched me as if I was guilty of felony. _

"_You can cook" my mother asked slightly appalled. _

_I looked at her for a moment, not really sure what I should say next. Had I said something wrong?_

"_A little" I tried to weaken my obviously terrible offer. _

"_And a little means…?" my mom asked. _

"_Ahm…"  
_

"_Putting a ready-to-serve meal into the microwave? Or are you a second Jamie Oliver?" she continued her drilling question. _

"_More the first" I quickly lied. "What do you think about ordering a pizza?" I then said, quickly changing the topic. I was relieved when a new conversation started over whether to order pizza or Chinese. _

The last memory of this exciting week was Friday night dinner at the grandparents house. She had been quite nervous to meet her grandparents after everything Lorelai had told her about them. As she let herself drift into this last memory, she was suddenly interrupted by Babette and Moray, who started their day with a little stroll.

"Hey Doll" Babette waved from the front garden of her house, as Moray followed her, pulling a little trolley behind him or pasichiatta as he would call it, in which their cat Apricot lay lazily inside.

"Hey" she said, waving back.

"You are up early" Babette exclaimed, already curious as always in the earliest hours of the morning.

"Couldn't sleep" she quickly said, not really burning on having chitchat.

"Oh alright. See ya later Doll" she said, and gladly she continued her stroll.

Avery nodded and concentrated once again on the past week. She closed her eyes for a moment and thought back on Friday night.

* * *


	12. Friday Night Dinner

**Thank you to all the reviewers. I'm flattered!**

**Synch14:** Thank you as always Synch. And yes, she soon will get revenge. I just have to think about a propper punishment!

**roywthpoddles:** Wow, I feel so flattered by your last review. :-). And thanks for liking it so much. Keep reading! Thank you!

**Marcel-Marceau-chicken: **Thanks for reviewing. Here is the next chapter. Copper Boom ;-)

**lukeandlorealilove:** Thanks so much. Your review meant a lot. I put a lot of hard work in that Luke/Taylor scene. So I'm glag you like it. Keep reading!

**lorelai gilmore danes1:** Thank you very much for the review. In this chapter, she will talk even more. Enjoy!

**Ali-Chan1:** Yep, here comes the promised Friday night dinner. Keep reading. And thank you!

**AthleticCharmedOne:** Here the update! And thanks once again for the review. It means very much! Enjoy

**kasluvsg1:** Thanks so much for your kind words. I'm really glad you liked the previous chapter, I put a lot of work in it. And yes, maybe I will let her cook something later on :-). Thanks again.

**Tonje:** Thanks again for your review! Here comes the friday night dinner. have fun!

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**francisj:** Yeah, so much love :-). Thanks for reviewing!

**cho:** Thanks for reviewing. Sorry, for the cliffhanger. :-)

**LukelovesLorelai:** Hey, thank you for your nice review. And thanks for telling me the thing with the city town thing. I mixed it up, it's because English is not my native tongue. Sorry for that. :-)

* * *

Chapter 11: 

"Are the Grandparents really **so** frightening?" I asked Rory, with an extra pronunciation on the "so", as we stood in her room, and she got herself ready for Friday night dinner.

"What?" she asked, as she struggled, getting her head through a baby blue v-neck shirt, that accented her pretty eyes.

"The Grandparents. Are they really as bad as mo…Lorelai said?" I asked, mumbling the last part however, attempting to swallow down the nearly used word, which luckily came out as a simple syllable.

I still couldn't bring myself to call my mother "Mom". In fact, nobody had I ever called Mom or dad. Even my adoptive parents had I addressed with their first names. It just wasn't natural or appropriate to call them Mom or dad, because for me they have never been a parent replacement but more like two good friends or and aunt or uncle. At least I felt that way at the beginning of my adoption, when things had still been nice and pretty. Over the years, however, my feelings had changed, and no more longer saw I Hank as a friend or an uncle but he became an object of fear, hate and desperation.

I had never really felt the need or urge to call anyone Mom or dad. I lived in the believe that my real parents were dead and as hard as the reality of this situation was for me, I got used to the thought of never calling anyone Mommy or daddy. That's how things had been for 16 long years.

But suddenly everything changed with a huge "bangboombang" and I found myself in a situation where my Mom was alive and past habits overthrew itself. Once again I was faced with the possibility of calling someone Mom. This time however it was justified and real.

I felt trapped. Trapped between two sides. One side that stood for the overwhelming trust, safety and love I was met with, as soon as these two crazy, lovable girls bounced into my life. The other side however, accompanied me my whole life long and was by far superior. This side was like an insisting, chasing shadow that would not lose its grasp around me. It was an indicator of my past life, that was marked by oppression and abuse.

Yes, these two sides overshadowed my constant happiness and nearly seemed to crash me. Me, the one who was standing in the middle of this two sites. Once again the question that wouldn't leave me alone over the past few days forced itself its way back into my head.

Should I call Lorelai, Mom or not?

For any other person this must have seemed like an unworthy subject to even worry about. This is your mother, so you call her mother.

But for me this was anything but easy. I haven't known my Mom for 16 long years. 16 years, in which I slowly got used to the thought of being an orphan. Could I ignore 16 years of my life and bring myself to call someone Mom, whom I had known for about a week? Someone who should have accompanied me my whole life long but who hadn't?

Trust was something that couldn't grow from one day to the other. Trust came with time. Could I trust her enough to take the final step and call her by the name, she naturally inherited by birth?

My head was spinning wildly as I considered these facts and shook my head lightly to return into reality.

"No, Grandma and Grandpa are really not so bad" Rory answered my question, after my little trip into "Avery world".

"But… so many things have happened between the three of them. Things about, which they never have talked or which they attempted to solve. Mom's flight, for example, will always be an issue between them. And I don't see how they will ever resolve those issues, as happy as I would be about it" she explained, as she tied up her hair in a pigtail.

I nodded understandingly, remembering the conversation my Mom and I had a few days ago, where she told me about her past.

"I have to admit, though, that Grandma can be quite strenuous sometimes. She is a perfectionist, you must know. The candles have to have an exact height of five inches, the porcelain has to be polished until you see you face in it and believe me when I say, you won't find the smallest dust particle in this house. Oh….and…she must have had about hundred different maids over the years. Every Friday, there is a new maid opening the door. If one stays for more than a week, than you can bet that she is really good.

As Rory went on with her description of our Grandma, my eyebrows wandered higher and higher. I could already guess that the word strenuous as Rory had put it wouldn't comply with the personality of Emily Gilmore.

"You look nice" my sister interrupted the silence of the Moment, as she turned over to me.

I wore a white, knee-length skirt, with small blue flowers on it, a matching blue halter-neck top and black knee-high boots. This outfit had resulted from the marathon like shopping tour we made two days ago. It was a perfect day, however and again everything was so totally new for me. That, going shopping with your Mom and sister, could be so much fun, was an incredible new experience. As lazy as they normally seemed, as soon as we entered the mall, they turned into two different people. They rushed from one shop to the other, and I had a hard time following them.

"Thanks" I said a little embarrassed, as my gaze wandered down on the floor. "You look nice yourself" I mumbled shyly.

"Wait a sec" Rory suddenly said, as she went over to her commode. "Come over" she instructed me, and I did as I was told. She held a necklace and two matching ear rings in her hand.

"Okay, now its perfect" she said, after she had added the final touches.

I mustered myself in the mirror and honestly I was shocked what I saw in there. I had to look a second time to be completely sure that it was in deed me, who I was looking at. I had never really cared about this whole girly stuff, including make up, jewellery, clothes, the right hairstyle etc. But as I watched myself in this mirror, I had to smile a little. For the first time I didn't look at a reflection of a pale, desperate, tear-stained face. No, I saw a young woman, with intense blue eyes, dark curly hair that hang loosely over her shoulders, light rosé coloured cheeks, and a small smile grazing her lips. The playful white-blue colour of her clothes accented her eyes even more and the ear rings and the necklace gave her face its last touch.

The girl she was looking at, was about an inch smaller than her sister and as these two girls stood shoulder on shoulder beside each other, one could clearly see the astonishing resemblance for the very first time.

I closed my eyes for a second to let the realisation sunk in, that it was in deed me, who I was looking at in this mirror.

"Wow" Rory gasped, as she probably also spotted the resemblance in our appearances.

"Yeah, wow" I said in answer, as I suddenly felt Rory taking my hand in hers. And as our eyes met in the mirror, we both had to smile because I was sure that she felt it too. The incredible warmth that was filling me as we stood there hand in hand, and our gazes locked. I clearly felt that something eternally was connecting us and believe me I wouldn't have been surprised when the room would have suddenly lit up and the sound of angel choirs, bells and harps could have been heard. This Moment was really magical and something had happened inside of me, in that Moment. My safety wall, which had bewared me from disappointment and pain, literally broke down in front of my eyes. And it felt like a huge liberation, as if a load of bottled up emotions, was falling off my chest. It felt good. It felt right. I felt free.

"Girls you ready for dinner in hell?" our Mom's voice interrupted the magical Moment.

Rory gave me a last quick smile and squeezed my hand before we left the room together.

"I can already hear my mother talking: Lorelai, I would think I taught you better manners than this. Introducing us to our granddaughter, a whole week after you found out about her. Bla bla blabla" my Mom imitated her mother in a high-pitched, snobbish sounding voice as we wandered into the living room.

"Wow…you both…you look beautiful" she finally gasped, after a long pause, with wide eyes and open mouth.

"Ella…you…oh wow…" she stuttered for the very first time, since I had met her and I believe that this was a very rare occasion.

"You look stunning…. Like an Ella Bella." She said that last part with an exaggerated Italian accent. I had to smile at this gesture.

"You are so doomed" my Mom suddenly said from one Moment to the other. "As soon as my mother has laid eyes on you in that outfit, you are sooooo going to be a debutant" she seriously said, patting my shoulder pityingly.

"Mom, don't scare her like that" Rory said smirking. "Don't listen to her, Ella"

"Hey, such a coming out has many advantages." She said defendingly. "You are going to be a real lady of society and you…."

"Come on, we go." Rory finally said, taking my hand and leading me out, while switching off the light behind her. However, one could still hear my mother standing in the darkness of the living room, babbling without interruption.

"…boys know that you are on the market now, you can wear a puffy white dress…oh…oh…and when you spin around, it's a delight for everyone…oh…and…and…"

* * *

After a 30 minute ride, in which my mother constantly talked about sewing me a debutant dress, how I would end up marrying the guy, who would ask for the first dance and finally ended the conversation, what a great dowry the ape lamp in the living room would make, we arrived in Hartford. 

"We have been standing here for about ten minutes" Rory said unnerved the hundredth time, as we were waiting in front of a huge oak door of an even huger mansion.

"I'm not ready yet" my mother answered once again.

"And when are you ready?" she asked, while tapping her fingers on the façade of the house.

"When Emily Gilmore opens that door in a miniskirt and a tank top, which says "I'm a DAR chick" on it" she said, as suddenly the door opened abruptly.

"Oh…hey…Mom. We were just talking about you." She stammered, obviously shocked by the sudden appearance.

"Lorelai, how long have you been standing out here" Emily asked her as she shot her a punishing glance.

"We were just getting here…a couple of seconds ago. Right girls?" she said, while shooting us a persuading look, eyebrows raised.

"Yes. We just got here" Rory supported our mother's little lie.

Then, Emily's eyes fell on me, as I stood beside Rory, and tried to appear completely inconspicuously. I felt a little bit uncomfortable as her steel grey eyes were fixed on me, mustering me from had to toe and back from toe to head.

"Well….ahm…as you probably have already guessed, that's Ella" my Mom said nervously, as she gritted her nails into the coffee mug, she had got herself from Luke's before we came here.

"Ella?" my Grandmother asked, while her expression stayed completely blank, unable to read any form of emotion from it.

"Ah, yeah…her nickname. I thought we keep up the tradition, right?" Mom nervously laughed.

The tension of the Moment got more and more unbearable, so I finally decided to step in and loosen up the awkwardness of the situation.

"Hello. Very nice to meet you" I said as I stretched out my hand to shake hers.

What came next however, I clearly hadn't seen coming or a expected in a million years. My Grandma made a step towards me and embraced me in a tight, welcoming hug. As I stood there with my Grandmother's arm around me, I turned my face slightly left to be faced with the shocked expressions of my Mom and sister. Both of them stood there, mouth wide open, not believing what they witnessed right now.

"Welcome home Avery" she finally said, as she opened the embrace again, and chased us into the foyer.

"Ringoberta, the coats please" Emily ordered a woman, who was obviously the new maid and once again the strict voice had returned.

"Ringoberta?" my Mom chuckled slightly at the sound of the name, while at the same time Emily shot her the second punishing look of the evening, which made her laughter subside immediately.

"She is from Chile. Hardly understands a word I'm saying. I don't think I'm keeping her for long" the elderly woman said completely serious as if talking about some kind of animal.

"Make yourselves comfortable in the living room. I go and get Richard" she then said before wandering off in one of the seemingly uncountable rooms of the mansion.

"What…was….that" my Mom shockingly asked, as soon as Emily had disappeared. "Was that my mother? Because if she wasn't, she had one hell of a good surgeon"

"I think it was really her" Rory mused. "She was obviously happy to se you" she said to me, giving me a small smile.

"I still can't believe that it was her. Maybe there was an alien invasion and…"

"Mom! She will be back any Moment" Rory harshly whispered, as she glanced nervously into the direction her Grandmother had disappeared.

"I don't trust this peacefulness. At some point, I bet, she will dig out the old accusations. How I haven't told her that I was pregnant with twins. How she had to find out in the hospital about the both of you. Bla bla bla….Back then, she couldn't quite make me responsible for it, because I was too devastated about….you know what. She had to suppress her urge of blaming the whole situation on me. But now…finally…after years of suppressed anger….she can finally let it out on me." she ended her little speech.

"Come on Mom, I don't believe that she would ever blame the situation on you." Rory said, shaking her head in disbelieve.

"Oh, you don't know what my mother is able to" she sighed heavily, as Emily walked back into the living room, closely followed by her husband.

"Well, I guess it's time for introductions. Dad….meet your granddaughter Avery Elizabeth…short form Ella. Ella this is your Grandpa." She gestured her hand from me to her father.

I smiled shyly as I took in the tall figure of my grandfather in front of me.

"She is tall. Lorelai, isn't she tall?" he wondered, as he closely took in my appearance.

"Well…you thought she would still wear diapers and a dummy?" Mom said sarcastically.

"Lorelai, your jokes are not really appropriate right now." He strictly said, while giving Rory a small hug.

"Hello Rory"

"Hey Grandpa"

"So, young lady, welcome to the family" my Grandpa finally said, as he stepped in front of me and wrapped his arms around my in comparison small figure.

"Thank you" I quietly said, wondering why my Mom talked so badly about her parents. They seemed really nice, so far. A little bit stiff maybe, but apart from that they were really welcoming.

"Dinner is served" the maid interrupted our little meeting.

"Thank you Ringoberta" my Grandma answered, as we made our way into the dining room. I really was amazed by the enormity and size of the house. And Rory was right about the part that the house almost seemed like a museum. The reflection of the porcelain was nearly blinding, the candles really had an exact height of five inches, every vase had its rightful place and didn't seem to have been touched in a whole decade and there was in deed no trace of the smallest dust particle. Museum, was in deed the right word that described this house.

* * *

"So Lorelai, how are things at that charming Inn of yours" my grandma started the conversation of the evening.

"Good." She answered quickly, while poking her fork into the avocadoes.

"And Avery…how do you like Stars Hollow so far" she started a new attempt.

"It's nice. Very funny people" I answered, while swallowing down the caviar.

"I see." She said.

"Avery, do you have ever heard of a debutant ball." She suddenly said after a small pause.

"Oh boy, here we go." Mom groaned loudly, rolling her eyes.

"Lorelai Gilmore, would you stop that rude behaviour of yours." Emily said, while shooting Mom one of her looks. Slowly but surely I understood what Rory had meant with the word strenuous.

"First you introduce us to our granddaughter a whole week after you found out about her and all kind of different people have met her before we actually have. And then you cannot hide your rude attitude for once." She said furiously.

"Sorry Mom" she said, while shooting us a look that said "Haven't I told you". "It would have been too much for her. I just wanted her to get settled down, get acclimated and used to her new life." She said apologetically.

Obviously she seemed to swallow that excuse, because she concentrated once again on the lobster on her plate. "But this discussion is not over yet." She quickly added.

"So Avery." My Grandpa started at another point during our extravagant dinner. "Do you like school?"

"School?" I asked a little surprised by the question. "Ahm…yes I do"

"Good. Good. Because a good education is the main pillar of a successful career." He explained seriously. "Nothing is more important for a young person than the quality of his education."

I nodded my head "yes" in agreement, although I didn't quite know where he was heading with this his little lecture.

"Rory wants to go to Harvard one day." He went on.

"Yes, I know." I answered politely.

"Only with hard work and persistence, you will be accepted at an Ivy League College" he said, while I still kept nodding my head.

"But not only hard studying will get you there but attending a good school like Chilton, will help you to achieve your goals. Rory is at Chilton."

"I know" I said once again, as I looked confused at Rory and Mom.

"So, are you a good student? Rory is a brilliant student she is part of the best 3 of her class." He continued his questions.

"Dad! I don't think that this is really important right now" my Mom finally interrupted his question game, as she dropped her fork loudly.

"What can be more important, Lorelai!" he countered.

"What grades did you have in your old school?" he asked again.

I was completely perplexed by the outcome of this conversation. I sat there, staring blankly down on my plate, as he asked me one question after another.

School was a very touchy subject for me, because back in my old life I wasn't able to concentrate on good grades, on studying or any other school related things. Most of the time I had just been relieved when I made it through a single school day without pounding questions about bruises or any other forms of conversations.

Going to school was always a very stressful thing for me, because I lived in the constant fear that my secret could be revealed. As much as I loved and was passionate about studying, reading and writing, at school I just prayed that the hours would pass and at home I had no chance to study, because there was Hank. As soon as I did anything school related he would scream at me, if I hadn't anything better to do than wasting my time with reading or writing.

Therefore, my grades had never been better than C's, D's or sometimes B's. My whole life long I dreamt of attending a college, but back in my past life there was no chance of fulfilling this illusion. Hearing my grandfather talk about school and how very important a good education was, filled me with anger and embarrassment at the same time. Embarrassment over the fact that my grades didn't comply with my real abilities and anger that I had never been able to show what I was really able to at school. This anger suddenly seemed to take overhand in me and suddenly I could hardly control myself any more.

"I had C's, D's…and when I was very lucky… and my dear adoptive father wouldn't lay his hands on me for once, I even had a B sometimes." I suddenly started to unload my anger. But this was not only about school any more, but suddenly the whole unfairness of my life seemed to erupt out of me, like the spitting lava of a volcano.

"I didn't have the time to care about good grades, about studying, about tests and homework. I was relieved when I made it through the day! I was relieved when nobody had asked me about the bruises on my arms…on my back…on my whole body. I counted the hours, when the bell would finally ring and mark the end of a long… nerve straining school day. Yes…in that moment relieve washed over me, but in the next second I had to think about what still lay ahead of me. A home…no…a life, with an abusive, alcoholic man…who wouldn't allow me to care about school. Who would…raise…his hand as soon as I would step into his house. How could I care about school, when I could hardly drag myself into my room not to mention to fall asleep. There wasn't a day, when I didn't cry myself to sleep… when I didn't wince from the pain inside my body…when I didn't wish that I would rather die than live one more day in this hell." I cried bitterly, as big, fat tears streamed down my face.

I took my head in my hands and tried to hide the desperation that was practically written on my face. I couldn't believe what I had said right now. Had I really started to cry in front of these people? Had I talked about Hank? Had I talked about my past? My shoulders were shaking as one sob after the other escaped my lips. I couldn't remember when I had cried so uncontrollably the last time in my life. It was if my whole past was flowing out of me like a huge waterfall.

Suddenly I felt the tight soothing hands of my mother around me. She gently stroked my hair, and leaned my head on her shoulder. Desperately, I wrapped my arms around her and hung on to her as if there would be no tomorrow. I cried so hard, until my Mom's shoulder was nearly soaked wet. We stayed in that position for several minutes, until my tears finally subsided and my shaking body seemed to calm itself. I squeezed my eyes shut, before I finally let go of my Mom, my breath still coming out in small gasps. I still felt her gentle palm on my cheek, while she stroked her other hand rhythmically through my hair.

"I'm sorry…**Mom**" I whispered, nearly inaudibly. There, I had said it. It escaped my lips unintentionally but it had felt like the most natural thing in the world.

"You don't have to be sorry, babe" she said soothingly, as a tear of happiness left her eye, not daring to leave my side for a moment.

Slowly I studied the expressions of Rory, Grandma and Grandpa, afraid what I would see in it.

To my surprise, single tears rolled down Rory's cheeks and in her eyes I could only see compassion and love but no trace of pity as I had feared. Even in the eyes of Grandpa and Grandma glistened a few lonely tears. I shook my head lightly and took a deep breath, to calm myself.

"I'm sorry" I said again, this time however my apology was directed towards my Grandpa.

"You don't have to be." he repeated the words of my Mom, as he stood up and kneeled besides my chair. "I'm sorry for my behaviour earlier. You don't have to be sorry for anything." He said soothingly

"It just was too much. I…I'm just… so…angry" I said with a pained expression.

"You have… every right to be angry" Rory said nodding her head wildly. "Gosh…I'm furious at the simple thought what this guy has done to you."

"I will crush this little worm. I will hunt him down, drag him in front of the highest court, and and…" Richard said.

"Dad!" Mom interrupted his threats.

"Sorry" he sighed defeated. "This man, he will pay for what he has done to you. And so will Strobe and Francine. I still can't believe that they…"

"I know" Mom said.

"Have you told Christopher yet?" Grandma suddenly asked.

"Not yet. It's so hard" she sighed, while getting up from her kneeling position. "I just know, that Francine and Strobe will come back from a business trip tomorrow and the police will arrest them at the airport."

"This is unbelievable. Unbelievable." Grandma furiously said, pounding her fork with every new word on the table, to underline her resentment.

"These people. That they had the nerve to do something like that. To take such measures." She continued.

"Could we talk about something different now?" my Mom interrupted my Grandmother's rant.

"So or so, we and they have to face the consequences of their actions soon. And god help me, when I face those people, somebody has to hold me back or I'm going to kill them" my Mom said, while rubbing her forehead.

As I wiped away the last traces of my little break down, we continued our dinner as if nothing had happened. My head, however, was pounding furiously as I thought about the approaching encounter between me, my family and the people, who had prevented me from growing up with my Mom and Rory.

"My apologies again for my behaviour earlier, Avery" my Grandpa said once again.

"It's okay." I answered, giving him a small smile.

"What I really wanted to ask you earlier was, if you intend on going to Chilton yourself." He said, as I looked at him completely surprised.

"Dad!" Mom said unnerved.

"Ah…I…I don't know. My grades are not…."

"Forget about your grades." Grandma quickly said. "We know the headmaster, and I'm sure we could arrange something."

"I don't know. I think I would feel quite uncomfortable, visiting an elite school, just because my Grandparents know the headmaster." I said seriously.

"I like that attitude" Grandpa said noddingly but seemingly disappointed at the same time.

"But if I could take some kind of test, that would qualify me to visit Chilton, then I would gladly take it." I quickly added, as I saw the disappointed faces of my Grandparents.

"We will phone headmaster Charleston as soon as tomorrow morning" my grandmother said excitedly, her eyes sparkling like the ones of a child on Christmas.

"Any thoughts about what you want to study?" Grandpa continued in his excitement.

"Dad!" Mom said once again, while Rory slightly chuckled about the cute behaviour of her Gradnparents.

"What Lorelai?" he asked innocently.

"Actually I have" I interrupted their little banter. "I always dreamed about studying medicine."

All heads suddenly turned in my direction.

"Really?" Mom and Rory asked me at the same time, while I nodded my head.

"This is brilliant" Grandma said enthusiastically. "A doctor in our family. All the girls from the DAR will envy me for that." She said, while I had to smile about the dreamy expression in her eyes.

Not in my wildest dreams had I ever considered or even dared to think about attending a college like Harvard, Yale, Princeton or Stanford. This new life, enabled me completely new chances and possibilities. And why not, take a chance like that?

I stuck my fork in a piece of lobster and chewed happily as I considered this new chance on life.

* * *


	13. Henry VIII, why don't you see me?

**Thanks to the reviewers out there!**

**Ali-Chan1:** Your review made me smile. Thank you!

**caitymonkey123:** Wow, I'm so flattered. I'm glad you like it so much. You have a friend that is like Avery? That's cool. Keep reading. Thank you.

**Synch14:** You can bet that she is a straight A student :-). It just lies in the family. Thank your for your review.

**swiglo3000:** Thank you so much for you review! Keep reading!

**LLfan:** Thanks for your sweet review. I'm trying my best to update as soon as possible.

**roywthepoodles:** Thank for reviewing so regularly. It means reall much! Your last review made me really smile. I'm flattered.

**AthleticCharmedOne:** You awe me too with your sweet reviews :-). Thank you!

**lukeandlorealilove:** Sorry about the little lobster incident ;-). Hope you keep reading despite it. Thank you again for your review!

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**JavaJunkie22:** As always, thank you JavaJunkie :-).

**crystal:** Thanx for the ideas crystal! I'll give it a thought! Thank you for reviewing!

**vicky:** Thank you for reading and reviewing Vicky! It means really much! Hope you continue reading!

**Tonje:** Thank you once again Tonje, for your regular reviews. I'm glad you liked it!

**jennalynn:** Hey, thanx for your review. And no I'm not considering stopping it, don't worry :-). Thank you for your kind words. Keep reading!

**I-look-just-like-rory:** As you wish :-).

**Allyria:** Thank you Allyria. Here the update! Keep reading.

* * *

_Sorry for not updating in a while. But first I was sick! And then I just had a lack of inspiration! I guess the following is not my best chapter. I just couldn't come up with good ideas on how to start the whole trial/court thingy. Anyways, here the next chapter._

Chapter 13:

"Henry the VIII was born in?"

"1491" I answered, while stretching my arms out in a desperate act of exhaustion.

Grandma indeed hadn't lied when she had told me she would call headmaster Charleston as soon as the following day. For a moment I let myself drift away. Far away from Henry, the Tudors, and the whole bunch of other crazy inbreeded monarchs and thought back on today's morning.

* * *

At 8:00 a.m. sharp, the bell rang and grandmas' personal delivery boy presented me ceremoniously with a huge envelope, marked with the venerable Chilton stamp. And all this on a Sunday morning. Soon after that little encounter the telephone rang and no other but Emily Gilmore herself was on the other end of the line. 

"So you have received the envelope!" she said more like a statement but a question as soon as Rory had handed me the phone.

"Yes…just a minute ago" I told her, surprised about how she could possibly already know this, for the delivery guy had just left a moment ago.

"Mom, was probably right, she had indeed telepathic abilities" I thought, frowning my forehead slightly.

"I called Hanlin, and explained the situation. A very stubborn man. He told me that he couldn't take exceptions, that he had to treat every student equally etc etc. But…my friends do not call me the Cobra without any good reason" she said in a really strange, almost frightening voice.

"I hammered him with very convincing arguments until I had dragged him into the farthest corner where he couldn't escape any more. I pulled the snare and I had him" she laughed victoriously.

"Would she had broken out in hysterical fit of sneering laughter, like one of those villains on TV, I would have really started to worry" I thought as I continued to listen to her words.

"So I said….Hanlin…we have known each other for a very long time now. You and I, we are well respected people, highly prestigious in our circles. Your wife and I are members of the DAR and the Society matrons league and many more. But this is not about how well respected we are or about our status in society, but about a girl, who deserves to have a second chance on live, who deserves to have the best education she can get. I don't ask you to take her into your school without any effort. She herself is only willing to go to Chilton if she can prove herself. So let her take a test or an exam…whatever…. if she won't pass, which will not happen, then I'm grateful that you have given her a chance, but if she passes, then it could only mean a gain for Chilton" Grandma continued in such an excitement over her achievement, that I couldn't hold back a smile.

"So finally he agreed but he said that he wouldn't favour you. Hanlin worked out a range of subjects and topics yesterday and that's what's in the envelope. The test will be very hard Hanlin said and will be the day before school starts. The 8th of September. So you have two and half weeks left to prepare yourself." she finally ended her little speech, waiting for my reaction.

"Wow…that's great. Thank you" I stammered. "I really appreciate it Mrs. Gil….I mean Grandma" I corrected myself quickly.

"My pleasure. Now go and study. We see us on Friday" she replied shortly before ending the conversation.

"What did she want?" Rory asked, who just appeared out of the kitchen with a plate of pancakes in her left hand and a fork in the other one.

"Telling me that I have received an envelope" I told her with raised eyebrows and a frown on my forehead.

"Good that we have Grandma to inform us about those things" she replied smirking, while shaking her head.

"Also that she has convinced headmaster Charleston to give me a chance to prove myself for Chilton. That the examination will be very hard and I've got two and half weeks to prepare myself" I repeated the words of Grandma.

"Wow. Awesome. This is so great. So what's in this envelope?" Rory asked as she slumped down on the sofa in the living room.

"According to Grandma, the topics for the entrance examination of Chilton" I told her while positioning myself in the armchair opposite Rory.

"Oh my God! Really?" she practically squeaked. "What are you waiting for? Open it" she ordered me excitedly.

I did as I was told and neatly opened the envelope. Carefully I unfolded the paper, like it was a document of highest and foremost importance and for me it was indeed. Slowly I scanned over the first piece of paper, which was a letter by headmaster Charleston. Telling me at what time and date to appear to the examination, wishing me good look and the usual formal bla bla. The second paper contained the list of subjects, plus the topics, I would be tested in. And I'm not kidding when I say that this little harmless, plain looking piece of paper seemed to take no end. The list of topics was endless, infinite, unending! My eyes wandered in a desperate attempt left and right and back again to process the mass of information.

* * *

_**Subjects:** English, Mathematic, Latin, French, Science, History_

_**Topics: **_

_English: _

_1) The Middle Ages: __Medieval Estates and Orders, __King Arthur, __The First Crusade, __The Linguistic and Literary Contexts of the Middle Ages_

_2) The 16th Century: __Renaissance Exploration, __Reformation, __The Magician, the Heretic, and the Playwright_

_3) Early 17th Century: __Civil Wars of Ideas ,__Emigrants and Settlers _

_4) Restoration and the 18th Century: __Slavery and the Slave Trade in Britain, __The Plurality of Worlds, __Travel, and the Expansion of the Empire_

_5) The Romantic Period: __Literary Gothicism, __The French Revolution,__Romantic Orientalism_

_Mathematic: _

_1) Algebra_

_2) Discrete Math: Algorithms, Combinations, Permutations,_

_3) Linear Algebra: Vectors, Linear Equations,_

_4) Analysis: Approximations and Expansions_

_5) Pre-Calculus: Functions, Graphics, Trigonometry,_

_6) Calculus: Differentiation, Integration_

_Latin: _

_1) Ovid: _The Metamorphoses of Ovid, In Tristia, Epistulae ex Ponto,

_2) Caesar: De Bello Gallico_

_3)Pliny: Naturalis Historia_

* * *

I had to stop reading because suddenly I felt really dizzy. 

"How in the word could I learn all of this in two and a half weeks? And I wasn't even half through the topics yet. This was impossible" I thought desperately, while Rory got up from the sofa and took a look at the list herself.

"Wow" she gasped with her eyes wide open. "This is crazy! He really didn't lie when he said the test will be hard" Rory said matter of fact. "This is practically everything we have done the previous year" she explained.

"Well, I guess this means that I will go to Stars Hollow High then" I said defeated, while shrugging my shoulders helplessly.

"What? You want to give up without a fight?" Rory asked me appalled. "You can't leave me with Paris for another year. You simply have to go to Chilton."

"But"

"No buts" she told me strictly.

"So let me think this through" she said, while rubbing her forehead affectingly.

"We have six subjects and eighteen days to study. So we have three days for every subject. I suggest we spend two weeks on studying and the last week we use to revise" she murmured absently.

"We approximately study six hours before noon…. ahm… from …6:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m….then we include a two hour lunch break. From 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. we study again….this makes another four hours…again a two hour break…and from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. makes two hours. In total we have twelve hours per day. That makes 24 hours in two days. And…

"Rory?" I said, looking probably totally freaked out by now.

"This makes 84 hours a week…"

"Rory!

"168 hours in two weeks"

"Rory!" I practically screamed by now.

"What?" she asked startled, as she snapped out from her little math marathon.

"This is crazy!" I told her, shaking my head no.

"What? Don't you want to go to Chilton?" she asked me questioningly.

"Yes…but"

"Don't you want to go to Harvard and study medicine?"

"Sure…but"

"What?" she asked expectantly.

"Nothing" I sighed defeated, while thinking about the prospect of spending the next weeks indoors and studying an unbelievable time of twelve hours a day.

* * *

So here I was. Sitting with Rory in the living room, surrounded by books, papers, maps, notes and all kind of other learning materials. It was 5:40 p.m. by now, and an astonishing 7 hour studying marathon lay already behind us. Rory wanted to get an overall picture of my scholastic knowledge and skills and started to quiz me systematically with all kind of questions. We started with English, went over to Maths and have now reached the last subject, History. I was tired, hungry and all I could think about was the sweet luring break that lay ahead.

At the same time however, I felt guilty. Rory was setting so much trust in me. She believed in me. She believed that I could make it, that I could really pass the examination. And nobody had ever believed in me before. Believed in the real me. Believed that I could accomplish a goal like this. My whole life long I had just been a major disappointment for everyone. Now I had the chance to prove them wrong.

These thoughts filled me with new motivation and energy. If Rory believed that I could make it, then I would also believe it. I tore myself out of my thoughts and turned my attention once again to Rory. I would study until smoke would come out of my ears, I told myself. If I didn't owe it myself, then I would owe it at least Rory.

"How many wives did Henry VIII have? "Rory started anew.

"Six"

"Names?

"Catherine of Aragon: Marriage in 1509, divorcing her in 1533, one daughter Mary. Anne Boleyn : Marriage in 1533, executed for infidelity in 1536, one daughter Elizabeth. Jane Seymour: Marriage in 1536, died giving birth to Henry's lone male heir the same year. Anne of Cleves: Marriage was never consummated. Catherine Howard: Marriage in 1540, was executed for infidelity. And Catherine Parr: Marriage in 1543 until his death in 1547" I said without taking a breath once.

"Wow! How do you know so much about English History?" Rory asked me amazed, her blue eyes fixated on me.

"I don't know. I heard it somewhere?" I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"You heard it somewhere?" Rory asked incredulously.

"Well maybe I read a book about it" I tried again, this time with the truth.

"I would say we can confidently move on from History, because you are way better then I'm" Rory said, while ticking it off on her list.

In that same moment the front door swung open and in came mom.

"Oh my God. I'm so exhausted" she whined, while taking off her coat and shoes.

"Stupid wedding. Who in the world gets married on a Sunday? Oh yes, the Millers. So do you want to hear about my day? Of course you want!" she said before giving us a chance to respond.

"It started with me getting up at five. Can you believe it. Five! I guess not even my Hello Kitty alarm clock believed it. It continued with me heading to the Independence Inn, getting out of the car, and breaking my heel. I tell you that was a bad omen, because as soon as the priest was there, it started to rain. So the whole ceremony had to be moved indoors. Everybody was soaking wet. Then the rings disappeared because little flower girl Mary Sue had swallowed them. And it ended with Michel chasing little girls in hoop skirts. Okay….I have to admit that was funny. Can anyone top that" she finally ended her strain of words and let herself fall exhaustedly on the sofa.

"What's that mess?" she asked as she pulled out a book on English literature underneath her, which she had let herself fall on.

"Our day?" I asked. "Well, it started, me getting presented with this huge envelope, which was delivered by Grandmas' personal delivery guy. And not to forget, this on a Sunday. The minute I closed the door, the telephone rang and no other but Grandma was on the other end. By the way, I think you are right about her having telepathic abilities. Then she started to talk about her being a cobra and that she would squeeze so long until she would get her way" I stopped at that point, waiting for mom's reaction.

"The cobra? I remember hearing that before" she said smirking.

"Anyways, in the envelope were the subjects and topics I would have to learn for the entrance examination for Chilton. I guess she squeezed headmaster Charleston too" I said chuckling.

"Wow, Honey, that's great" she said, squeezing my hand affectingly.

"It is?" I asked sarcastically.

"Isn't it?" Mom asked.

"It is" Rory said. "I worked out a schedule. We have eighteen days to study and six subjects. We spend two days on every subject. I have calculated that if spend twelve hours studying every day, we can spend 24 hours on one subject. In two weeks we have everything through. And then there is one week left to revise everything."

"I get the sarcasm now" Mom said, while patting my head pityingly.

"That makes 84 hours a week. 168 hours in two weeks."

"And 216 hours in total" I ended her calculations. "Have you seen the list director Charleston has worked out?" I asked mom, while handing it over to her.

"Jesus, Maria, Joseph and a Camel" she said, her eyes getting wider and wider. "This is suicide."

"Don't discourage her" Rory said accusingly, shaking her head tauntingly. "She is really really really smart. I tested her in all six different subjects today."

"Seven hours" I mouthed, while holding up seven fingers, behind Rory's back. Mom tried her best to suppress the laughter that was threatening to come out.

"She knew a lot. Often more than I knew" Rory continued. "I'm sure she will make it. She has to. One more year with Paris and I'll go nuts" she sighed.

"I'm sure you will pass the test, Hon. You are both, smart and intelligent young girls. I don't know where this is coming from, but it's the truth" she chuckled, while getting up and patting both our heads.

"You know what! I'll go over to Luke's and grab us something to eat" Mom suddenly said. "The fridge is emptier than an empty glass."

"Nice comparison" Rory observed.

"You will need help. Won't you?" I asked hopefully, shooting mom a desperate look.

"No thanks. You better stay here and study a little bit more" Mom said mischievously, while I shot her a "you will regret this look".

* * *

"Ola Luke" I said, as I entered the diner with the usual jingling sound above me. 

"What do you want?" he countered in his gruffly voice, while balancing two plates with food through the diner.

"So gruffly today? Oh right, your are always like that" I said with a smile as my eyes unconsciously followed Luke as he made his way over to the table by the window.

"Great butt" I thought, but immediately was appalled by my own thoughts. "Were was this suddenly coming from?" I asked myself as I tore my gaze away from Luke.

"Luke is a friend nothing more" I thought. "Right?

"Right? Was I really asking myself if I was right. Of course I was right? Lorelai Gilmore you really need therapy" I told myself.

"So what do you want?" Luke's voice suddenly interrupted my strain of thoughts.

"What?" I asked a little bit startled.

"What can I get you" Luke tried again.

"Oh right. Three burgers. Big load of fries. And three pieces of apple cake" I quickly said to overplay the awkward moment.

"Are you okay Lorelai?" he asked, as he scribbled down my order.

"Sure" I said, avoiding his gaze.

_What's your problem Lorelai Gilmore _

"Hey Luke?"

"Hmm?"

"Can I talk to you for a moment. Maybe upstairs?" I suddenly asked, while Luke shot me a surprised look.

"Ahm…sure" he said. He pointed his hand to the door, or more to the curtain that led upstairs, and indicated me to follow him.

"So?" he finally asked, as we both stood in his little apartment.

"Wow, I have never been up here before, you know? Nice. Comfy. Very bachelor-like…."

"Lorelai?" he said impatiently, his eye brows raised expectantly.

"Why was I suddenly so nervous?" I thought.

"This was Luke. Stars Hollow Luke. Burger boy, coffee provider, handyman and good friend Luke. Nothing to be nervous about. Right? Oh boy, I'm talking to myself again."

As I stood there, face to face with Luke, his gaze so intensely fixed on me, I felt as if my feet would give in any minute. The palms of my hand were sweaty and I desperately tried to control the speed of my breath.

"Why in the world, was I acting so strange" I asked myself again.

Time seemed to stand still as I lifted my head, to be met with the eyes of Luke.

"Have they always been that blue? Why haven't I noticed earlier? Why haven't I noticed the tiny little scar beside his left brow. Why haven't I noticed how sexy his chin was or what gorgeous lips he had?" I thought, while my heart raised at speed 180km/h.

For the first time I saw him. I saw Luke. And I didn't see Luke the diner guy, Luke the coffee supplier or Luke the friend but I saw Luke. Luke has always been there. He was like a constant in my life. He was my anchor, whom I could cling to when I would fall. The only person I could rely on 100 percent.

He brought Rory mashed potatoes when she was sick. He built a coffin for Tony the caterpillar. He offered me money when termites threatened to eat my house. But most important of all he was there when I needed him the most. When I found out that Avery was alive, he didn't question the situation but simply supported me in every way a person could possibly do. He drove us to the hospital. He sat with us the whole night in front of Avery's room. He was there without any question. And that was something I wasn't used to. My whole life long I had to fight for things. I wasn't used to someone doing me a favour without anything in return until I met Luke. Over the years, however, it had become a habit, a routine. I took it for granted that he would always be there for me. Now I realised that it wasn't. I was very very lucky that I had someone like Luke in my life. To have someone, who cared for you, someone who would do everything for you.

"I've been so blind" I thought. "All those years, Rory and Sookie, told me over and over again. But now as I looked into his eyes, I finally realised that they were right. I finally saw the compassion and devotion in those beautiful blue eyes."

"Lorelai?" he tried again and this time I snapped out of my thoughts.

"Luke" I started. "I wanted to thank you."

"Thank me?" he asked startled.

"I want to thank you for everything you have done for me, Rory and Ella. What you have done for me on that particular day, I will never forget. You have been there" I practically whispered by now.

"I wouldn't have made it through that day without you" I said this time with more confidence.

"I didn't do anything" Luke told me and it felt as if his eyes would look right into my soul.

"Just being there, just your presence, helped me through the day. You have always been there. And for this I wanted to thank you." I said, giving him a shy smile.

"No problem" he said in his typical Luke way of being. But just a look into his eyes, told me that my words meant a lot more to him.

"Avery is a great kid" he said nodding. "Just like her mom"

"Thanks" I said shyly, my cheeks turning a light shade of red.

"You are…_what should I say now? You are great too? Very lame. You are sexy? Lorelai, get a grip. You are everything I ever wanted in a man, in a partner? Very true. You are like a father for Rory? Also true. You are the best thing that ever happened to me? So true_…a very good friend.

"You are a very good friend? You are a very good friend? That was so typical for you, Lorelai Gilmore" I thought and I could practically see Luke's disappointment written all over his face.

"What was the matter with me? Why couldn't I tell him, that I cared for him so much more than a friend? I'm such a chicken"

"Lorelai why don't you see me?" he suddenly said and his words hit me like a punch into my face.

The painful disappointment in his eyes was worse than the sad expression he had on his face.

"I see you Luke. I see you. I really do" everything inside of me screamed.

Just as I opened my mouth to prove him wrong, to tell him that I did see him, my cell phone rang.

"Why in the world did it have to ring now?" I wanted to scream, but instead I grabbed into my bag to dig for the phone.

Luke was the first to break eye contact and, oh God, it pained me to hurt him so much. What was wrong with me? First I tell him how he was always there for me and then he asked me a simple question and I couldn't answer? Why didn't I just answer and switch off the stupid phone?

"Hello? I finally answered the phone with an angry undertone.

"Chris?" I gasped, my eyes turning frantically over to Luke. The second time this day I saw pure hurt and disappointment in his eyes. He shot me a last glance and headed out of the door.

"Luke" I desperately called as the door closed behind him. For a moment I was paralysed and near tears. Why did I hurt the person that was so important to me?

"Chris?" I asked again.

"_My parents are in jail"_

"I know" I said, squeezing my eyes shut and rubbing my forehead exhaustedly.

"_You know? Why?"_

"You don't know why?" I asked appalled.

"_I just came back from California with Sherry and my father called me to inform me that I should take over his business for a while until the misunderstanding will be resolved. He told me nothing more."_

"Misunderstanding? You must be kidding me!" I nearly screamed into the phone.

"_Lore I don't understand"_

"Christopher! You parents are responsible that Ella couldn't grow up with her real family. They are responsible that she has been abused and mistreated. And they call it a misunderstanding?"

"_Who is Ella"_

"Avery"

"_Avery?"_

"_Ella is Avery!"_

"_Who is Avery?"_

"What?" I shouted.

"_Who is Avery?"_

"Oh God Christopher!

"_What?"_

"You daughter Christopher. She is your daughter! Remember!" I sighed defeated.

"_Lore you know that she is dead, right?"_

"That's the point Christopher!" I barked. "She isn't. Your disgusting parents have kidnapped her from the hospital and gave her up for adoption. She grew up with an abusive man, who mistreated her so much that she ended up in the hospital. In some twisted way I should even thank him, because wouldn't she have been brought to that hospital I would have never found out that she is alive"

"_She is alive?"_

"Haven't you listened?"

"_So she really is alive?…Have you seen her?"_

"Of course I have. She lives with us"

"_Why haven't you called me?"_

"I wanted to wait until you are back from L.A. I didn't want to tell you over the phone."

"_Oh god"_

"I know" I sighed once again.

"_I'll come as soon as possible"_

"Okay Chris. Bye."

"_Bye"_

I took a deep breath and stayed like that for a moment. I shook my head, as if I couldn't quite believe what had happened in the last 30 minutes. First I hurt and disappointed Luke and then Christopher's phone call left me in a state of confusion and anger. In addition there were all these new feelings inside my stomach as soon as I thought about Luke, which however I couldn't quite name.

As I stood there all by myself in Luke's apartment, my mobile rang once again.

"Can't you just leave me alone for a moment?" I said frustrated to the phone in my hand.

"Hello?" I answered sharply.

"_Am I speaking with Lorelai Gilmore?"_

"Yes"

"_This is Daniel Hart. I'm court usher in the trial of both Hayden and Thompson versus the State. I call to inform you that both trials will already be next Wednesday. As you know, we do need yours and Avery Thompson's testimony."_

"Next Wednesday?" I asked shocked. "Both?"

"_Yes they are coincidentally both on the same day. The first trial will be at 7:00 a.m. until 12:00 a.m. in which Avery Thompson's testimony will be needed. The trial against the Haydens will start at 2:00 p.m. and will end approximately at 6:00 p.m._

"Thank you. And her name is Avery Gilmore" I said angrily before ending the conversation.

I threw the phone into my bag and slowly headed down the stairs. Luke, who was just standing with his back faced to me, didn't notice me as I slipped out of the diner with two other guests.

Slowly I slandered down the street, as I processed this last conversation. I didn't expect the trials to be so soon. I thought it would take months until it would come to a trial. Months until I would come face to face with the Haydens. Months in which I would have time to process everything that had happened the last weeks. And how in the world should I tell Ella that she would have to face the man that had hurt her so much? All these thoughts accompanied my way home.

* * *

If anyone has a few suggestions about love interests for Ella, plz tell me. Jess, Tristan, a new guy or nobody? Tell me what you think! 


	14. The Gilmore's Black Wednesday Part I

**WOW, I'm so very flattered! 22 reviews for one chapter! Thanks so much everyone!**

I'm very sorry for the delay. But University started again with the 1st of March and unfortunately I haven't got so much time for writing any more. I try my best to update regularly although! I hope you understand!

About my question for a love interest for Ella. Wow, there are so many different opinions out there. Some people say Jess, some Tristan, Dean, Logan, somebody else. I'm not really sure yet what I'm going to do or when. But I think in chapter 16 or so I will introduce Ella's new guy. We will se.

* * *

**Snych14:** Thank you Synch. Well, yes you are right a story isn't without a love interest. Well Ella and Dean will be a little difficult because the story takes place in season two and Rory and Dean are still together. I will bring back and introduce him to the new Gilmore Girl. Thank you for reviewing.

**roywthepoodles:** Thank you so much once again. Your review made my day too :-). Your idea about Tristan is definitely one to consider. Thanks for the suggestion. Keep on reading.

**SephoraGirl13:** Thank you SephoraGirl! Well, I'm really not sure, who she should date yet, but thanx for the hint.

**lukeandlorealilove:** Hey, thanks so much for your regular reviews! I'll leave the lobsters out from now on :-). Thanx for your opinion about a love interest for Ella. I'll consider it.

**caitymonkey123:** Thank you so much for the review! Great idea about bringing the abuse into a love story. I'll think about it. Thanks. Keep on reading.

**Tonje:** So, finally update. Sorry for the delay. Thank you so much again. And thanks for your opinion. I'll see what I can do :-)

**Allyria:** Thanks Allyria. I felt so flattered when I read your last review. Gosh, everybody has a different opinion about a love interest :-). But thanks for telling me yours but I can't promise anything because I don't know myself yet. Thank you again!

**gottalovethegilmores:** Thank you so much for your review. Yes, you a right that they have, as you put it _the whole "my childhood sucked" angle in common. _Thanks for the idea. I'm not sure yet however. Everbody has a different opinion, that makes it really hard. But really thank you for the suggestion.

**Hanna:** Thank you Hanna!

**JavaJunkie22: **Here the update! Thanks one again. I feel so flattered!

**crystal:** Hey, wow 4 reviews in a row! Thanks for liking it so much. So you think I should pick jess? Well, it's so hard to pick someone now. Because there are so many different opinions out there now. I hope I won't dissapint anyone. Mmmm...what I think? Well, Jess would be okay because they have as you said a bad past in common. I think Tristan could also be interesting because he has this wild side, the total opposite of Ella. She could be a good influence on him. Or I go with someone totall different. I reall don't know yet. Thanks again for your reviews!

**TOOKY CLOSE PIN:** Thank you so much for liking it! I feel reall flattered. And she is done sitting on the porch. Sorry that this was a little confusing. Here, finally the update. Keep on reading!

**Marisa: **Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. It means a lot! I'm glad you like so much. Well, as I said, I'm really not sure what to do with a love interest yet. Hope you'll like it though. Keep on reading. Thanks again

**GG-fan-till-the-day-I-die: **Thank you for reviewing and your opinion on a love interest. I'll see what I can do :-).

**kasluvsg1: **Thanks so much for you review! I'm so flattered! NOt sure yet whom I'm going to choose for Ella. Hope you like it though. Thanks again.

**AthleticCharmedOne: **You really don't have to be sorry :-). I'm just glad you reviewed. Doesn't matter when or where. Thank you so much for you regular reviews. I feel soooo flattered!

**vicky: **Thanx Vicky! I'm really glad you like it! And thanks so much for your opinion. I'm still very undecided. But nice idea about Collin and Finn. Keep on reading. Thank you again and sorry for the long delay.

**jennalynn: **Thank you jennalynn. Sorry about the POV thing. I changed it in this chapter. Thanks for telling me. Here, finally the update.

**LukelovesLorelai: **And last but not least, also thank you to you. And yes I agree, Lorelai and Luke belong together :-). Thank for reviewing. Keep on reading

* * *

Chapter 14: 

Lorelai's POV

Taunting darkness weighted on the outlines of my tired body as I desperately tossed and turned from one bed side to the other. Only the red flashing numbers of my alarm clock served as a reminder on the earliness of the hour. Once again, I turned around in frustration, to come face to face with 4:00 o'clock in the morning. I sighed grumpily, as I gave my alarm clock an angry kick with my left hand. I pulled the blanket above my head to blind out the unnerving blinking numbers. For a moment, I cherished the peacefulness, I seemed to have finally found, but once again was caught up by my own thoughts. Hunting thoughts about today's approaching events, that would definitely go down in history as the Gilmore's Black Wednesday.

Yes….today I would have to face the people, who had kidnapped my daughter and prevented her from having the life she deserved. I would meet the people, who were scrupulous enough to push their granddaughter away like a piece of dirt, who sold her without batting an eyelid. Could someone really be that superficial and shallow minded as to simulate the death of a baby, only to preserve his esteem and reputation in society? Francine and Strobe Hayden indeed were such people. They would stop at nothing as the past had shown. They wouldn't make stop of committing a crime, nor would they make halt of destroying their own granddaughter's life. And what for? Because they feared what people could think about them? That people could talk behind their backs?

Another swift glance at the clock made me once again aware that I would have to face them in about three hours. I imagined hundred different ways, how I could make them suffer as much I had suffered all those years long. Compared to the loss of a child one would mean that there wasn't such a thing as an appropriate and equivalent punishment. But as deviously and unimportant it may seem for an ordinary person, there was no bigger punishment for Strobe and Francine as to destroy their status and name in their precious high society circles. That's what I was going to do. I would drag the valuable Hayden name through dirt. I would spread news of their criminal deed throughout Hartford's high society and I already knew the perfect person to help me. My mother. Who was more perfect for the job than Hartford's first lady, Emily Gilmore?

These thoughts of revenge gave me a slight feeling of solace but I still didn't really feel better or was less frightened of today's following events. I made a last attempt to find some sleep and peace but there was no such chance. I constantly saw Strobe and Francine in front of my eyes, laughing hysterically and victoriously into my face. And I saw the terrible man, who had hurt my little daughter, both physically and mentally, so much. Though I had no idea what he really looked liked, for me he was the personified evil. A pitiful, character lacking, disgusting little man.

I quickly opened my eyes to shake away these terrible images inside my head and decided, now that I was already awake, I could also go down and have a cup of coffee. I tiptoed down the stairs so that I wouldn't wake Ella, who had her room just next to mine. My worries however, were unfounded because as soon as I had reached the last step, I was met with no other but Ella sitting on the sofa in the living room.

"What are you doing down here?" I asked completely surprised as I studied my newly found daughter sitting on the couch with a book in her lap. She looked dead tired, with dark circles below her eyes and an exhausted expression on her face.

"I'm studying!" she answered, while a yawn escaped her lips.

"Studying?" I asked incredulously.

"Sweets, it's 4 o'clock in the morning! As much as I support yours and Rory's passion for studying, don't you think this is a little extreme?"

"I…I…I didn't study" she admitted sighing, while burying her head in her hands. "I couldn't sleep. I constantly have to think about today" she said, while running one hand through her curly hair and with the other massaging her left temple.

"Oh Honey" I sighed, as I rushed over to her side to embrace her in a tight hug. Soothingly, I stroked her tousled hair and rubbed gently over the small of her back, like one would do with a small child.

"Are you afraid?" I whispered into her hair, as her body relaxed more and more in my arms.

"Yes" she admitted shakingly.

"What of?"

"That…. when I will leave the house today… I won't come back home with you again," she whispered, while clinging to me tightly.

"What?" I asked incredulously, as I grabbed her shoulders gently to search her eyes for some answers. Her eyes were different. They, once again, had nearly lost their spark, like the first time we had met. Fear, anxiety, worry and insecurity could be found instead.

"Why do you think you won't come back?" I asked, while shaking my head in disbelieve.

"I don't know. I'm afraid that….that Hank will get custody of me!" she said with a pained expression.

"Sweets!" I said unbelievingly. "This is ridiculous! This not going to happen! Do you hear me! This man will go straight into prison after the process. You don't have to worry about anything. You don't have to worry about anything **ever **again." I told her, while gently holding her face in my hands.

"And besides… do you really think I would allow something like that? Before that happens I would grab Rory and you and run off to Russia or Kazakhstan or Turkmenistan or Uzbekistan or something like that" I said jokingly.

"This disgusting man has hurt you so much" I started anew, this time more serious. "I swear…after this process today, you won't have to be in the same room with him ever again. You will never see him again!"

"You… really don't have to worry. 'Cause once you have a Gilmore girl in your life, you won't get rid of it ever again. And that's a fact" I said with a wink, while looking straight into her sapphire blue eyes. "Alright!"

"Alright?" she said, while giving me an obviously relieved smile. Once again, she embraced me in a tight hug, sighing tiredly. "But if we really have to run off to another country, I would rather prefer the Caribbean or the Seychelles. Somewhere, more Mediterranean" she chuckled lightly and I was glad she was back to her old self again.

"Whatever you want, Hon" I said, stroking her hair. "Whatever you want."

"I wished the day would already be over" Ella suddenly said, after a moment of pleasant silence.

"I know…me too" I replied, as I rested my head on the back of the sofa. "But you know, there is something positive about this day.

"Really? What?"

"When this day is over, a whole new life will start for us. We close the old chapter, and start a complete new one. We can finally start our life together. Rory, you and me" I explained.

"And Luke" Ella suddenly said out of nowhere.

"What?" I stammered perplexed.

"Luke. You like him, right? A blind person could see that he is totally in love with you and you with him" Ella said with a wink.

"I…I…ahm" I continued to stammer, completely unprepared by this sudden question.

"Luke is a huge part of yours and Rory's life! Right?… For what I have witnessed so far he is like family for you…. and it may sound ridiculous, because I have known Luke for such a very short time…. But…. he probably is the closest thing I ever had to a father figure in my life. And I know that Rory thinks the same way" she went on.

I listened closely to her words, as she talked about Luke with this adoring glowing smile on her face. I knew she was right. Luke was and had always been like family for Rory and me. All those years all long I had been to blind to realise that Luke indeed was the one I could always rely on. That he was besides Rory the only person, who had always been there for me, no matter what. He cared for me and most important he cared for my daughters, like a real father. Not like Christopher, who showed up twice a year for birthdays, who had never been a real part, a real father figure in Rory's life. Secretly, I had always known that Luke was more of a dad for her, than Chris would ever be. But in some ways I guess I still dreamed of the perfect little family. Mother, father, daughter, a golden retriever, matching tracksuits…the whole package. Today, however, I knew that this was never going to happen. Not with Christopher. But perhaps Luke would make my picture of the whole package real instead.

"You are right" I finally admitted after a moment of silence, in which I frantically tried to suppress the obvious truth. Yes….Luke meant a lot to me. I may even love him… The hurt in his eyes, when he practically admitted his love for me, wouldn't leave me alone any more. It hunted me down. In my sleep and during the day. I replayed the situation over and over again, and every time I came to the same conclusion: I was standing like an idiot in front of him, not answering, not saying a thing.

"Yes, you are right" I said again, this time with more confidence. "Luke has always been there."

"Then tell him" Ella ordered me strictly. "He won't know how you feel, as long as you don't tell him."

I slowly nodded, letting the meaning of her words sink in.

"You know, for a 16 year-old, you know a hell of a lot about relationships, Mrs. Freud." I said amused by the seriousness of her words.

"Three episodes of the "Bold and the Beautiful" and you will be as wise as I am" she said jokingly with a smile I learned to love over the last weeks. A smile that could light up a room.

"Honestly? You watch soaps?" I chuckled.

"Of course. You learn a lot about everyday life. You learn how to act in certain situations. Like, when your mother is pregnant with the baby of your boyfriend, and you are pregnant with the baby of your mother's boyfriend at the same time. Or how, you should react when your sister, who died in a plane crash, suddenly stands in front of your door. Or…."

"Alright…I get the sarcasm now" I laughed. I hadn't laughed in days and it felt like a huge liberation.

"Sarcasm is the golden rule of becoming a Gilmore girl. You are on the right path, congratulation." I said with mock seriousness. "You know what I desperately need right now?"

"Coffee!" she said more like a statement than a question.

"You got it, bucko. You too?" I asked, as I got up from the sofa, stretching my arms tiredly into the air.

"You have to ask?" she said, while rolling her eyes dramatically.

"I'll be right back"

* * *

Ella's POV 

Several minutes after Mom had left the living room, I suddenly heard a light knock on the front door.

"Who could that be?" I wondered surprised. "Who would knock at five in the morning?"

I hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do. Mom, who was busy in the kitchen, obviously hadn't heard the knock, so I simply decided to answer the door myself.

Quickly, I combed my fingers through my hair, put on my slippers and tied up my bathrobe, to make myself as presentable as it was possible at 5 a.m. I expected Babette or Moray to stand outside, wanting to borrow oil for Apricot, who probably stuck once again in Moray's piano. Instead, a 30 something man, with light brown hairs, blue eyes and a motorbike jacket on, stood on the veranda.

"Yes?" I asked, while studying his face closely. I was sure I hadn't seen him before, but something was familiar about him.

"Who are you?" he asked me, seemingly perplexed by my appearance.

"Who are you?" I countered, not wanting to give my name to some stranger.

"I'm Christopher," he said hesitatingly. "I'm Rory's dad."

"Oh" I gasped, as the realization of who was standing in front of me, hit me completely unprepared. This man was my father. My biological father. I was stunned and for a moment, neither he nor I said a word.

"I….I'm Ella. Or Avery. Whatever you want" I finally broke the uncomfortable silence.

"You…are… Avery?" he said shocked. " Wow….I…oh wow…I don't know what to say. I clearly didn't see that one coming" he stammered nervously, his eyes fixed on me. He mustered me from head to toe, his eyes making quick, frantic movements.

"So….this means…you are my father, right?" I tried to lighten up the situation.

"I guess so" he nodded.

"_I guess so?" I thought. "What's that supposed to mean?" _

"Hey, who are you talking to?" the voice of mom, suddenly broke the uncomfortableness of the moment.

"Christopher?" she gasped in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Ahm…..well….the trial of my parents is today, right? I was just on my way to Hartford, and I thought I pay you a little visit," he explained, scratching his forehead nervously.

"Right….. and not because you wanted to meet your daughter?" she said with an unnerved undertone in her voice.

"Ah…yes…sure…this is also the reason" he quickly added.

"Well come in" Mom indicated him, while shooting me a questioning look.

"I'm surprised, you are up so early. I expected you to tar and feather me for coming by so early. I really didn't expect anyone to answer the door" Christopher explained, while positioning himself on the sofa.

"I couldn't sleep" Mom answered shortly.

I closed the door and followed her into the living room. I really didn't know what to think or how to act in a situation like that. I just had met my real father for the very first time in my life, but it seemed like the most normal, ordinary every day thing. Shouldn't this moment have been something very special and magical, like the first time I had met Mom, Rory and Luke? I really didn't know. But I knew that it should have been more than:  
_  
"This means…you are my father, right? _

"_I guess so" _

"I didn't imagine meeting my father to be like that. I mean…I never really imagined meeting my father. But if I had, than it definitely shouldn't have been like that. The moment lacked all kind of emotions and feelings.

"So…" Christopher interrupted my thoughts.

"So?" Mom said.

"This is weird, hah?" he started, while playing nervously with his fingers.

"What?" Mom asked expectantly, with raised eyebrows.

"Well, my parents….in court…!"

"Mmmhhh…" Mom grunted in return.

"I just hope they'll get out of this whole ordeal?" he laughed nervously, obviously startled by Mom's behaviour.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Mom asked vigorously, with a sudden dead serious expression on her face.

"Ahm…I….what's the matter Lore?" he asked uncertainly.

"What did you mean by saying: I hope they'll get out of this ordeal?" she asked again, the mood of the situation getting colder and colder from any minute.

"That my parents won't go into prison of course. Or what do you mean?" he asked confused.

"Say this again" Mom practically spat into his face. "Look into my eyes and say this again."

"I don't understand Lore?"

"Tell me you don't mean that?" she said, her voice shaking with anger.

"I…" Chris opened his mouth but decided to better not say anything any more.

"Damn it Chris" Mom shouted. "Your parents have kidnapped Ella, their own granddaughter…. simulated her death…. bribed a doctor to tell me that my baby had died…..and you honestly tell me that you want your parents to come away without any from of punishment. Do you even have the slightest idea how I felt when I had to learn that I had lost her. Do you know how I felt all those years long? 16 years I thought she is dead" she pointed frantically into my direction.

"Your parents gave her into an orphanage. She grew up with an abusive, alcoholic man, who had mistreated her, her whole life long. Several weeks longer and she may have been dead by now." Her voice nearly broke by this last words.

Angry tears stormed down her cheeks as I listened to her words. I was stricken by the hurt and desperation in her voice, while the incredible disappointment on her face nearly made me cry. Like frozen, I stood in the middle of the living room and continued watching frighteningly the interaction between my mom and father.

"Lorelai…what exactly do you expect from me? Do you want me to hate my parents? Do you want me to wish that they should go into jail?" Chris asked angrily, while jumping up from his sitting position.

"Yes…Chris… that's what I expect from you" Mom yelled furiously. "You never had a problem with disliking or hating your parents before. And now…that there is a real reason for hating and despising them….now you stand up for them? What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing's wrong with me. You are the one, who started to scream here like an idiot" he

shouted.

"Damn it Chris. She is your daughter too" mom pointed at me vigorously. "And you didn't have the courage to come here and get her to know earlier?"

"I better go now. You don't know what you are talking about any more" he said.

"Oh, I know exactly what I'm saying. You know….for the very first time I see things very clear" she said more calmly.

"All those years…I stood up for you in front Rory. I thought up excuses why her dad wouldn't come for her first school day or school plays and all the other important things you have missed in her life. But you know what….you weren't worth it. She deserves so much more than you. You are a lousy father and you don't deserve two such wonderful daughters like Rory or Ella. You really don't!" she said resentfully.

"I don't want you in our lives any more. And now…leave my house or I forgetful myself!" Mom ordered him coldly, while pointing her hand to the door.

"Lore…"

"Go" she spat angrily.

For a moment Christopher's eyes met mine and I could see regret and hurt in it. But I couldn't bring up the tiniest bit of pity for him. It was his own fault and I indeed wouldn't miss him in my life. I had Mom, Rory, Luke, Sookie, my grandparents and the whole bunch of Stars Hollow citizens and that was enough. I didn't need him, nor did Rory.

Without any further words he left the house, banging the door behind him soundly.

Mom sighed heavily as new tears made their way to the surface and sprinkled down her cheeks. Carefully, I approached her and searched her eyes questioningly. I tightly wrapped my arms around her to give her comfort and solace.

"Do you hate me now" she snivelled.

"What? Why should I hate you?" I asked perplexed.

"Because, I banned your father out of our lives, without giving you the chance to get him to know?" she said with a pained expression.

"First of all, I could never hate you. And second, I would never question your decisions. I really don't need him in my life. I have you and Rory and that's enough. I don't need anyone else…"

"Nor do I" Rory's voice suddenly interrupted the moment, as she rounded the corner into the living room, in her pyjama.

"Have you….?" Mom started.

"Yes I have heard you. Every single word" she finished her sentence.

"I'm sorry" Mom whispered sadly.

"No, Ella's right. You don't have to be sorry. It was the right thing to do. I can't believe dad would say something like that. I wouldn't have believed it, hadn't I heard it with my own ears."

"I love you guys so much" she sobbed, while embracing us in a tight hug.

"Love you too" Rory replied.

"I love you. You both" I said for the very first time in my life. It had flown out of my mouth uncontrollably but I didn't regret it, because it had felt like the most normal, perfect thing in the world. And although, today's following events still overshadowed our constant happiness, the moment couldn't have been more perfect.

* * *

Lorelai's POV 

"Do you swear to tell the truth? The whole truth? Nothing but the truth? So help you God?"

"I do" I nervously answered the judge's standard question, which probably everybody had heard before in some kind of cheap Hollywood movie.

The process had been really long and strenuous so far. It was 10:30 by now and another one and a half hour still lay ahead. Strobe and Francine had been anything else but cooperating so far. I had furiously listened to their words and point of view from the first row of the court room and hadn't it been for the calming presences of Rory, Ella and my parents, I probably would have shaken the truth out of them violently by now. However, I knew that they wouldn't get far with this uncooperating attitude, for the evidence and burden of proof was too obvious and indisputable as they could talk themselves out of their deed. In the end they would pay for their actions, I was sure about that. Not even the best lawyer in the world could prevent them from escaping their rightful punishment.

I was the last one and at the same time main witness to give my testimony in this process for today, before the jurymen would finally decide the outcome of the trial.

"Your full name please!"

"Lorelai Victoria Gilmore" I answered the defenders question, as I glared evilly at him.

"_What the hell was there to defend?" I asked myself, as I played nervously with the bracelet around my wrist, that Rory had given me before the trial, to bring me luck. "The case was as clear as daylight! Wasn't it? So what was there to defend?"_

"You are the mother of Avery Elizabeth Thompson, right?" he continued his questions.

"Avery Gilmore and yes I'm her mother" I corrected him with an unnerved angry undertone in my voice.

"According to my sources her name is Thompson. You are not in custody of her yet, which means you are not her legal guardian" he read unaffected and coldly from the huge pack of files in his hands.

"But she will be soon" I shot back, my voice vibrating with fury.

"We will see"

"Could we please continue with the inquiry" the voice of the judge suddenly echoed through the court room.

"Of course" the defender quickly said, before continuing his intriguing questioning.

"According to my sources, you got pregnant at the age of sixteen and gave birth to twins the same year, of 1984?"

"Yes….. But what does this have to do with…" I started, confused by the development of the questions, but was interrupted immediately.

"Just answer the question please" he ordered me, while I looked helplessly over to Rory, Ella and my parents, who all gave me encouraging, cheering smiles and thumps up.

I took a deep breath, and swallowed down the terrible nervousness, which swept throughout my body, and once again concentrated on the man in front of me.

"Bringing up a child at the age of sixteen, I imagine to be a very difficult task?" he started again, after a short silence, in which he had studied the notes in his hands.

"I don't understand" I answered in confusion.

"Please, just answer the question" he demanded once again.

"Yes…I guess…it is, but…"

"Thank you" he interrupted me again.

"Isn't it true that you ran away from home with your baby at the age of sixteen?" he continued to hammer me with his torturing inquiry.

"Yes" I finally answered after a long pause, in which I desperately tried to come up with all sorts of explanations, but decided to better not say anything any more, for I could already foresee the reaction of the defender.

"And isn't it true, that you refused to marry the father of your babies, Christopher Hayden, son of Francine and Strobe Hayden?"

"Yes" I sighed in defeat as my gaze met Chris' for a moment.

"Isn't it true Ms. Gilmore, that Francine and Strobe Hayden, indeed planned a future for you and their son. They wanted you to be part of their family. They wanted you to marry their son, and on that way guarantee you a carefree future. All they wanted in return, was a little bit of honesty!

"That's a lie" my father's roaring voice suddenly rang throughout the court room. "Strobe never wanted Lorelai and Christopher to get married. They were against it from the very beginning."

"Silence" the judge banged down his hammer soundly. "Mr. Gilmore! Please, sit down, or I'll have to escort you out of the court.

Dad slumped down in defeat, while shooting me an excusing look. This wasn't how I imagined this trial to be. It indeed wasn't.

"They expected a little bit of honesty from you" the defender repeated his last sentence. "Isn't it true Ms. Gilmore, that you lied to them about your pregnancy? Isn't it true, that you haven't told anyone that you indeed were pregnant with twins"

"Yes" I whispered inaudibly.

"Pardon me?"

"Yes" I desperately answered again, while swallowing down the tears that threatened to surface. Suddenly I was afraid. I was terribly afraid. Not about the outcome of the trial or of Francine and Strobe or the defender, but I was afraid that they would take Ella away from me. That they would refuse to give me custody over her and that I would loose her once again. An incredible fear crept throughout my body as I considered this dreading possibility. The speed of my breathing increased while my heart pounded uncontrollably. Panic rose up in me and my body was like paralysed as my breathing got more and more difficult. I couldn't bear loosing her again. This simple thought made my body shake like an erupting volcano, like a dreading earthquake, like thunder and lightening altogether.

"Ms. Gilmore? Are you alright?" the judge suddenly asked me concerned. "Do you need a break or a glass of water?"

I shook my head no, as I desperately tried to control my body and the speed of my breath. For a moment I closed my eyes and tried to gather myself. I tried to suppress the dark, overshadowing thoughts that were responsible for my current condition. I quickly let my eyes wander over to my family, who watched me with concerned faces.

"You alright?" Ella mouthed, and I could tell that she was just as scared as I was. The fearful expression on her face and uncertainty in her eyes, finally made me snap up from my state of self-pity and rigidity.

No….I wouldn't give up so easily. I wouldn't give up without a fight. The price was too high as to give up jut like that. I had to be strong for the sake of my daughters. With these new thoughts I concentrated once again on the trial.

"So… you admit that you have lied about your pregnancy because you wanted to deliberately hurt Francine and Strobe Hayden?"

"No! This wasn't the reason" I shot back angrily with my knew found strength and courage.

"I was afraid to tell the truth because I exactly knew how they would react. They were outraged and furious when they learned about my pregnancy. They blamed me for destroying Christopher's future and they only agreed to marriage because they had been afraid what a child out of wedlock, as they would call it, would do to their status and prestige in society. That's the only thing they are concerned about. Their status in their precious high society circles and what people could think about them. They have never been concerned about me or the baby. And would they have known about me being pregnant with twins, I don't even want to know what they would have done. They are cold-hearted, shallow-minded, superficial people and they disliked me from the very beginning…."

"This is ridiculous" Strobe cried as he jumped up from his seat. "She doesn't know what she is talking"

"Mr. Hayden! Take a seat! The next one, who interrupts the trial will be imposed with a 500$ fine. This is a court room…no circus" the judge said demandingly, while banging wildly with his hammer.

"Ms. Gilmore. Honestly! Haven't you been secretly relieved when you learned that you only had to take care of one baby and not of two? Isn't it so, that Strobe and Francine Hayden have done you a huge favour in giving up the baby for adoption? Honestly, Ms. Gilmore, do you really think you could haven taken care of two infants at the age of sixteen? Do you really think you could have guaranteed your children a decent future?" the defender asked me.

That was it. Enough was enough. My whole anger and fury exploded inside my body in an instant of a second.

"How dare you! Who do you think you are!" I screamed uncontrollably.

"Ms. Gilmore. Please!"

"No! You honestly tell me that taking a baby from its mother and giving it up for adoption is a favour! Do you have the slightest idea what it is like for a mother to loose her baby. Do you know how I felt when the doctor…" I pointed frantically over to the man beside Francine and Strobe, "…told me that my daughter had died due to complications?"

"Ms. Gilmore" the judge tried to interrupt me again, but I didn't care.

"And how dare you say I couldn't guarantee a future for my children! Yes, I was young but this doesn't make me a bad parent….Do you call, growing up with an abusive man, a decent future?..."

"This circumstance will be handled in another trial" the defender quickly said.

"Ms. Gilmore" the judge banged the hammer wildly, which silenced me for a moment.

"May I say something" Rory's voice suddenly pierced through the room.

"And you are?" the judge asked.

"Rory Gilmore" she said shyly. "This is my mother and Avery is my sister"

"Go on" he waved his hand for her to talk.

"Yes… my mother was sixteen when she had me and my sister…" she started, while I listened closely to her words.

"…and as she had said….this doesn't make one a bad parent. My mother is the most wonderful, loving and caring person. She filled my life with love and warmth, security and compassion. I have never missed anything in my life. My mother enabled me a future others would dream about. I attend one of the best private schools in the whole country. I'm a straights A student and after High School I will attend Harvard and study Journalism. I live in a great house, in a great city. I have great friends and people I can always rely on. And do you know, who I owe all of this? Yes…my mom. You don't call this a decent future? With all due respect….but this is simply ridiculous. One thing however, overshadowed our life. The death of my sister. There was always something missing….she was missing.

My whole life long, people told me I shouldn't become like my mom. That I shouldn't get pregnant so young? But you know what? There is no other person I would rather become than my mom. She is the person I'm looking up to. She is my guidepost for everything."

"And wouldn't it be for these people over there" she pointed her finger over to the defendants. "Than Avery, wouldn't have suffered so much pain all those years long," she ended her speech.

"Thank you" the judge said and indicated her to take a seat again.

"No further questions" the defender said, while I quickly wiped away the tears, which Rory's words had caused.

"May the jurymen, please, retreat now and adjudicate a decision" the judge finally ended the inquiry.

* * *


	15. The Gilmore's Black Wednesday Part II

Hey there!

Oh boy...I haven't reviewed in ages. I can't believe that it has been 5 months. Well, I could tell you that university got in my way, which however would only be partly true. I guess I just kinda have lost my inspiration for this story. Recieving however constantly these really sweet reviews asking me to continue made me pick up the story again. I'm not sure if this chapter is any good...but I try to find my old writing form again.

**THANK YOU** to all the amazing people out there who took their time for reviewing and for reading the story. You are awesome. Many many thanks. I just hope I still can live up to your expectations :-))

* * *

**Lorelai's POV**

In an unreal, trance like state I stumbled out of the stuffy courtroom and let myself slump hard against the nearest wall. I tightly squeezed my eyes shut while trying to control the agonizing speed of my seemingly uncontrollable breathing. The whole situation seemed so unreal…..it was as if I hadn't been myself these past four hours. It was as if I had been standing beside myself and watching a complete stranger. How come that I suddenly was the accused one here? How come that I was suddenly accused of lying and betraying? What was the matter with me anyways? Normally I would stand up for the things I believed in and speak my mind but in there, it was if some kind of invisible force had prevented me form doing so.

Instead I had let myself take all the blame and guilt over what had happened on my shoulders. The whole situation had just been so completely overwhelming that it had caught me totally off guard. When it came to the well-being of my daughters I could turn into a complete different person. And exactly this worry over Ella….this fear had consummated me so much the last couple of hours that I hadn't been able to catch a single, clear thought any more.

Now that I was able to think clear again, anger started to take over my body. I wasn't the bad one or the accused one here. **I** was the one, who had lost her daughter. **I** was the one, who had missed out on every single important event in her life. First steps, first words, first smile, first day at school. Things that are lost in time, which couldn't be brought back and I would never be able to witness again. These 16 years were never going to come back again. Time had been stolen from us and no punishment in the world would justice this fact or bring back the lost years. I honestly, didn't care about the extent of their punishment or the extent of their imprisonment, any more. All I longed for was, grabbing my daughters, going home and finally start a life without constant sadness and guilt in the back of my mind.

"Mom! Mom!" the voice of Rory broke my trance like state.

"Are you all right?" Rory tried again, but somehow the meaning of her words couldn't break through my current wall of self-pity.

"Mom?"

"Hmm?" I shook my head lightly to ban the unpleasant thoughts out of my head, at least for a while. I had to be strong for Rory and Ella. That's what I had always done, it's what I was best at. Right now, however, I desperately longed for someone, who for once in my life was strong for me. Someone I could lean on to. Let myself fall, and not think about the consequences of my actions for once.

"I'm all right Hon….I just….I just need to be alone for a second!….I'll go out and get some fresh air" I quickly added, while giving her a quick agonized smile. I knew of course that she saw through my fake facade, but she also knew me better than anyone else. And when I said I needed some time alone she respected that.

"Okay…but if you need something…."

"You'll be the first person to know " I smiled gratefully and quickly headed down through one of the many court's hallways. As soon as I had rounded the first corner, I started to run. I ran like a lunatic through the building, not caring if I would ever find back again. The scene reminded me a lot on the day when I had found out about Ella the first time. Exactly like now, I had run like a mad woman through dozens of different hallways. Now the situation was different of course…..or maybe the situation wasn't so different at all. Everything was like a cruel déjà vu. Once again I was standing in front of the dreading situation of loosing my daughter. My mind of course told me that this was ridiculous, that this wasn't going to happen. But the fear would not let me catch a clear thought. Therefore, all I could do was running, running as fast as I could.

"Lorelai?" I suddenly heard my name ring throughout one of the corridors. The unexpected voice broke my rhythm of setting one foot in front of the other. And next thing I knew, I was lying flat on my stomach.

"Oh my God….Lorelai…are you allright?" the voice, who had stopped my crazy sprint, could be heard again. I felt someone kneeling beside me and the palm of a hand stroked gently through my hair and down my spine

"Lorelai…..are you hurt?" the male voice whispered worriedly as he carefully supported my body in a sitting position.

A veil of tears prevented a clear view on the person beside me but somehow deep in inside, I already knew who was sitting there beside me. His gentle hands on my skin, his breath on my neck, sent dozens of shivers all over my skin.

"Luke!" I whispered hopefully as I blinked a few times to get rid of the tears in my eyes.

"Yeah…" he murmured as he continued to support my weight in his hands, while running his fingers through my hair.

"_What was he doing here?" I asked myself, while deliberately trying to avoid his eyes. I knew, that when my eyes would meet his, all the guilt and pain of how I have treated Luke, would come back in an instant of a second. I just couldn't bare to see the disappointment and pain in his eyes one more time. I couldn't bare to see the hurt written all over the one's person's face, who had always been there for me, who I loved so much. Therefore, I fixated my gaze on his hand, which was slung around my waist. Unconsciously, I started to play with the dip of his flannel shirt, which had an unreal soothing effect on me. How does it come, that when I needed him the most, he was always there? _

"Lorelai?" Luke whispered questioningly as I could feel his warm breath against my neck, which made my heart race even more.

"Are you hurt?" he asked again, worry swinging in his voice. "What happened Lorelai?"

"_What was he doing here" I repeated the question in my head again. "Why was he here?" Because of Avery? Because of Rory?_

"What…what…are you doing here" the words finally found its way out of my mouth. Still, I kept my eyes fixed on Luke's hand. This way everything was so much easier.

"I…ahm….well…Avery's trial is today, right?…And I…thought…well…"

"_He always starts to stammer when he is embarrassed" I thought, while a tiny smile appeared on my lips. _

"Well…you know what I mean!" he mumbled.

"What?" I asked.

"She is a great girl you know…and….I…well. Ah Jeez! Of course I'm here. Avery is important to me…and I wouldn't have missed this day for anything else in the world" he mumbled the last part very quickly and nearly inaudibly. "And….because of you…of course"

_Had I heard him right? Not only was he here because of Ella, which made me fall in love with him all over again. But he also was here because of me?_

"Luke?" I whispered as I finally brought myself to meet his eyes. I questioningly searched for the truth, for some sort of confirmation of his words. Did he mean what he had said?

"I've been here like…I don't know…two hours? This stupid building consist of never ending hallways. Everything looks the same. Stupid bureaucrats! Have I mentioned that I hate lawyers and judges and….."

"Luke?" I quickly interrupted his words, by laying one finger against his lips.

"_He always starts to babble when he tries to overplay his nervousness" I thought. It's funny that you observe little, seemingly unimportant things like that, not until it's too late. Was it too late?_

Time seemed to stand still as our eyes finally met one another. Yes, it may sound like a typical cliché out of a sappy romance novel, but it's true, time seemed to stand still. People passed us and they may have asked themselves why two people were sitting in the middle of a hallway. But nothing but us mattered at that moment.

"_So…was it to late to tell him that I truly loved him? Or had I, like so often before, scared him away? Had I hurt him too much?_

"Lorelai….?" he tried again, my finger still resting against his lips.

"Luke!" I interrupted him with a shaking voice once again. My whole body was shaking and my heart was racing like jackhammer. It was now or never.

"Luke….I see you!" my voice nearly broke by my words.

"I see you!" I tried again. "Do you hear me Luke? I have seen you for a very long time….I….I…. see you !" I tried to hold back the tears that threatened to surface but somehow it wouldn't work.

"What?" he asked unbelievingly. Now, he was the one, who was searching my eyes for the truth of my words. And he would find nothing but the truth.

"You do?" he said more like a statement than a question. I nodded yes.

"I love you Luke!" I suddenly said. It slipped from my lips, like the most normal thing in the world, considering the fact that I had never said those three words before to a man and considering that I had said them in the middle of one of the worst days of my life. But what had I to loose? My heart was broken already. It broke when I had hurt Luke so much on that particular day. When he practically confessed his love to me and I did say nothing.

"I'm so sorry Luke. I never wanted to hurt you" I desperately tried to explain. "You know me Luke…when I'm afraid of something I start to run."

"Why are you afraid, Lorelai?" he asked, while taking my face gently into his hands.

"To loose you. What if it doesn't work out between us. Then I would loose a partner and a best friend at the same time. And I'm not sure if I could handle both of it" I explained with a trembling voice. "I couldn't bare it"

"That's not going to happen Lorelai" Luke firmly said, as he finally loosened his embrace and helped me to get up.

"How Luke! How do you know for sure?" I asked him expectantly.

"Because even if it wouldn't work out between us, I would still be your friend. I will always be there for you, Lorelai. Always. I love you way too much as to ever disappear out of your life" he admitted truthfully and next thing I knew I felt his lips against mine.

* * *

**Ella's POV**

"How do you feel?" Rory asked me as we stood in front of the courtroom in which the new trial would be held in.

"Nervous" I answered truthfully, as I thought about the things that still lay ahead. Thinking back on the trial before, I honestly felt like throwing up right here, right now. I so badly whished that everything would be over already but the harsh reality wouldn't let this happen of course.

"God….." I sighed. "Why can't things be easy for once?"

"Everything will be allright….you'll see!" Rory assured me soothingly as she embraced me in a tight welcoming hug. "It…..will be allright!"

I nodded thankfully while giving her a warm smile.

"I hope she was right" I thought. Somehow I had this uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach that something really bad was going to happen.

"Hey…I just rush to the restroom for a minute…okay?" Rory interrupted my thoughts as I nodded in answer.

"Yeah okay….I will wait here" I added before she headed down the corridor.

So…here I was….standing once again in front of a life changing moment. Something that seemed to have become an everyday occurrence in my life. I sighed heavily as I let my gaze drift over to the huge door of the courtroom. Strangely, the door stood about an inch open, which made me wonder if somebody was already in there. I slowly walked over and risked a peek through the door. I couldn't really see anything so I simply walked into the room to get a little acclimated….to see the surroundings, in which I would meet the one person that I dreaded and feared so much in my life. I let my eyes wander over the benches where the judge and the jurymen would sit, over the seats of the auditory and typists and finally over to the defendant's bench, which was just a few feet away from me. What I saw there however let my blood freeze and my heart literally stand still. My whole body began to shake as the reality of the situation hit me unprepared.

It was Hank…..clothed in a typical orange prisoner overall…his hands and feet chained to some kind of appliance, which I guess was specially constructed for chaining handcuffs to it. Now I also noticed the two police officers, who seemed to lead a heated discussion, on the other side of the room.

"Hello Sweetheart!" the voice, which constantly hunted my dreams, echoed through my ear.

"Happy to see me?" he grinned.

I wanted to run….my brain told me to run as fast as I could…out of the room….out of the building….simply run. But all I could do was stand there like a rooted tree.

I wanted to scream….my brain told me to scream….but no sound would come out of my mouth.

"Don't even think about screaming" he seemed to have read my mind or maybe he had just interpreted the expression of my eyes, which reflected pure horror.

"I tell you now something Avery….and I want you to listen very carefully. Do you understand?" he harshly whispered so that the police officers wouldn't hear.

I desperately gasped for air, while tears threatened to makes its way down my cheeks. I tried to gulp down the surfacing stream of water as a few tiny sobs escaped my lips.

"If you say one word…..just one single word, which the judge or the whole bunch of bureaucrats could hold against me….then your sweet little family will pay for this….do you understand me?" he practically spat into my face. "I have ways and means that could make the life of mommy a living hell. So….one single word….."

"Ms…..Ms…..you are not authorized to be in this room" the voice of one of the police officers suddenly rang throughout the room but I hardly took notice of it. My body was shaking and my feet just wouldn't move. Unshielded tears were spilling down all over my face.

"Stop crying…." Hank ordered me furiously and to my surprise I did as I was told without wasting one thought about it. Why did he still have so much power over me?

"Ms….you are not authorized to be here" the officer said again as he reached me. He quickly shooed me out of the courtroom, closing the door behind me.

"Hey you….where have you been?" Rory suddenly stood beside me while I winced at her sudden appearance.

"Are you allright?" she asked with raised eyebrows. "You seem…scared? Did you just come out of the courtroom?"

"What…I….no….no…" I lied shakingly. "Just….nervous" I gulped heavily, as I gave her a fake smile.

"But…."Rory started again.

"Hey there is Mom…" I interrupted her and headed over to Luke and Mom.

* * *

**Lorelai's POV**

"Luke…?" I asked as we headed back trough the hallways.

"Mmmmmhh?" he gave in reply.

"I…I'm….." I sighed in frustration.

"Hey hey hey….what's the matter?"

"I'm so very glad that you are Luke!" I said in a shaky voice. "Because….I'm just….I'm just so very afraid of what will happen. I feel so empty Luke….empty and afraid. I'm not sure what I would do if they would take Ella from me"

"Lorelai…" Luke started.

"No….I know….this sounds ridiculous…and I know that this isn't going to happen…but still I'm afraid. You know….my whole life I had to be strong.…and now I have come to a point where I….I just don't feel able to be strong any more….I feel exhausted." I explained.

"You don't have to be strong any more…at least not all the time" Luke said, while taking my hands in his and looking straight into my eyes.

"Because I have you?" I asked, mesmerized by his eyes.

"Yes…because you have me. Let me help you Lorelai….let me carry some of your burdens…allright?"

"Allright" I whispered, while burying my head in his shoulder. "I love you" I said the second on this day.

"And I love you" Luke kissed my forehead and stroking lovingly through my hair.

"Hey there are Rory and Ella." Luke suddenly said.

* * *

**Ella's POV**

"Next I want to call Ms. Avery Elizabeth Thompson into the witness stand" the attorney announced.

Slowly I got up from the seat beside my Mom and Rory.

"Don't be afraid Honey. We are here…everything will be allright…nothing can happen to you…" Mom said soothingly while giving me an assuring smile.

"_But something can happen to you" I desperately thought._

"Ms. Avery Elizabeth Thompson. Do you swear to tell the truth? The whole truth? Nothing but the truth? So help you God?" the judge asked me with my hand positioned on the Bible.

"I….I swear" I choked out.

"Listen Ms. Thompson…we want to make this as easy and quick as possible for you…for we know that you were already part in another trial before….alright?" he asked.

I nodded, while swallowing hard as my gaze met Hank's cold eyes.

"I will read to you the bill of indictment and all I want you to do is say if the accusations are correct or not!" he explained.

I nodded once again and he started to read.

"Mr. Hank Thompson is accused of heavy physical as well as mental child abuse. He is accused of abusing Ms. Thompson with an iron rod, which resulted in several broken rips, bruises and concussions. He is accused of mistreating Ms. Thompson over ten whole years while the mental abuse dominated her life…." The advocate went on and on and on…..

After the first couple of lines I stopped listening. My eyes were fixed on the advocate. I saw his lips moving but no sound seemed to come out of his mouth. I was in trance…and everything seemed to be in a haze. Again my eyes drifted over to Hank, who stared coldly into my direction. An unbelievable fear swept once again over my whole body. And once again I asked myself why he had such an enormous power over me?

"All we need is your confirmation Ms. Thompson and we can release you out of the witness stand" the advocate finally finished, shaking me out of my trance.

"Are the accusations I just read out loud correct Ms. Thompson?"

I stared at him for a moment, before my eyes wandered over to Mom and Rory. I saw all their love and commitment for me and that's when I knew what I had to do.

I took a deep breath and answered: "No!"

* * *

Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think! Greets. 


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